Reign of treys as hot-shooting Adamson crushes UP

MANILA—Adamson University rained triples to rip University of the Philippines and conclude its first round campaign with a 72-46 triumph Thursday in the 74th UAAP men’s basketball.

The Falcons blistered from downtown as they connected on 11 of their 19 shots, but also flexed their muscles at the defensive end with 12 blocks as they improved to 5-2 and wrest solo second behind Ateneo.

Versatile swingman Alex Nuyles boasted of an all-around performance as he came out firing with 21 points built around three treys that went along with five rebounds and three steals.

Nuyles showcased more than his deadly shooting range, skying high for a two-handed slam that gave Adamson a 55-34 lead at the start of the fourth quarter of the opener at the Araneta Coliseum.

“We want to make a statement. We were criticized before that we could not handle the end game,” said coach Leo Austria, who notched his personal-best record since taking over the coaching reins for Adamson.

Senior guard Lester Alvarez knocked down four triples to finish with 16 points while Eric Camson, Roider Cabrera and Allen Etrone, who had at least a triple to their name, combined for 25 points.

Lionel Manyara notched seven of Adamson’s 12 rejections, tying the most number of blocks since FEU’s Aldrech Ramos’ block party last year.

Adamson padded on to the lead as big as 30 points with over two minutes to play as Etrone and Alvarez nailed back-to-back baskets from beyond-the-arc.

The Maroons, who dropped its fifth setback for seventh place, just lacked the firepower that lifted them in their two victories as main scorers Mike Silungan and Jet Manuel only managed 12 and five points, respectively.

“My boys responded well to our game plan. We limited their scorers and transition points,” said Austria.

But before catching fire from the field and pulling away, the Falcons battled through a dry spell as they just scored eight points in the entire opening period while the Maroons had six.

UP failed to reach the 50-point plateau for the second straight game.