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[av_heading heading=’Ateneo cagers end DLSU’s win streak ‘ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=” subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”]
BY ADRIAN STEWART CO
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MANILA – The Ateneo Blue Eagles handed archrival De La Salle University Green Archers its first loss in the UAAP Season 79 men’s seniors basketball tournament, 83-71, on Saturday night at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
Norman Aaron Black led the way with 16 points and seven rebounds for the Blue Eagles, which tightened its hold on the third spot in the standings with a 6-4 win-loss record.
Matthew Nieto chipped in 15 markers, while Adrian Wong and George Go contributed 11 and 10 points, respectively, for the Blue Eagles, which is on a three-game winning run.
The Blue Eagles went on a strong start in the opening frame to build a 19-13 lead behind Wong and Nieto. It later grew to 23-16 at the end of the opening period on a basket by Black.
The Blue Eagles continued to rely on Black in the second frame to widen the lead to 29-19. The Green Archers tried to keep close at 32-25, but triples by Anton Asistio and Jolo Mendoza extend Blue Eagles’ lead to 44-36 at halftime.
The Green Archers went on a surge early in the third frame behind Benoit Mbala and Jeron Teng to come to within 46-43, but the Blue Eagles responded with a run behind Black and Nieto to increase the lead to 59-46.
Baskets from rookie Raffy Verano and Go early in the fourth frame gave the Blue Eagles its largest lead at 76-58. The Green Archers made a late run behind Teng and Mbala but free throws by Ravena sealed the win for the Blue Eagles.
“Give credit to our players who stuck to the game plan,” said Blue Eagles head coach Sandy Arespacochaga. “DLSU is hard to beat. They are still the No. 1 team (in the standings) but standings don’t matter for the Ateneo-DLSU rivalry.”
Teng top-scored with 16 points, while Cameroonian import Mbala added 17 points and 15 rebounds for the Green Archers, which suffered its first defeat to slide down to a 12-1 win-loss slate./PN
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