INQUIRER Sports

A lot of the suspense that hovered over the opening day of the Filoil Flying V Preseason Invitational Cup centered on the much-hyped rookies of De La Salle University and Ateneo de Manila University.

Small wonder that the fate of the Archers and the Eagles seemed to conform with the performance of their prized recruits.

La Salle’s newbies got their minutes and helped the UAAP champions to a 69-53 rout of Jose Rizal University Sunday at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City.

Ateneo, on the other hand, kept their highly touted freshmen almost under wraps and got hammered by San Beda College, 70-61.

The veterans still showed the way for the winners, with JV Casio firing 19 points to lead the Archers.

For San Beda, which was boosted by the addition of another Nigerian in Emeka Udo, long-time standouts Pong Escobal and Ogie Menor did most of the damage in a crucial run that broke the game wide open.

The Archers’ rookies, led by La Salle Zobel’s David Joshua Webb and Japan-trained Maui Villanueva, chipped in their share, helping Casio and Rico Maierhoffer give La Salle a 43-29 spread late in the third period.

“We tried to play a decent game, but we’re not yet in game shape,” said La Salle coach Franz Pumaren.

Unlike La Salle’s freshmen, Buenafe along with sought-after rookies Justin Chua of Chiang Kai Shek and the Cubs’ Nico Salva only saw limited minutes.

The scores:

First Game
SAN BEDA 70—Escobal 14, Ekwe 14, Menor 12, Hermida 11, Taganas 7, Lanete 4, Marcelo 4, Gamalinda 2, Pascual 2, Tecson 0, Udo 0.
ATENEO 61—Tiu 17, Al Hussaini 10, Baclao 8, Salamat 6, Salva 6, Escueta 5, Long 4, Baldos 3, Buenafe 2, Reyes 0, Austria 0, Gonzaga 0, Chua 0.
Quarters: 16-18, 32-29, 52-44, 70-61

Second Game
LA SALLE 69—Casio 19, Barua 10, Mangahas 10, Bagatsing 7, Maierhofer 7, Noble 4, Villanueva 3, Atkins 3, Walsham 2, Revilla 2, Webb 2, Lee 0.
JOSE RIZAL 53—Wilson 17, Hayes 9, Cagoco 6, Sena 6, Agas 2, Bulangas 2, Nocom 2, Kabigting 2, Lopez 2, Lituania 2, Matute 2, Pradas 1, Njei 0, Apiñan 0, Montemayor 0.
Quarters: 18-16, 28-26, 47-36, 69-53