MANILA, Philippines — Ateneo stretched its win streak to four, but not before resisting a fourth-quarter fightback by Adamson for a 79-66 win Sunday in the UAAP season 76 men’s basketball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
From as high as 27 points, the Blue Eagles saw their lead dwindle down to just eight in a matter of four minutes early in the payoff period as the Falcons, behind Jericho Cruz, finally started hitting their buckets.
But Kiefer Ravena rose to the occasion and unleashed eight of the next 12 points of Ateneo to restore a double digit lead with under three minutes to play.
Ravena finished with 18 points as did Ryan Buenafe, whose lone basket of the fourth proved to be the dagger which put the Blue Eagles ahead 74-61 with 1:56 left.
As Ateneo slowly worked its way up to the top four with 5-4 card after a dismal start, Adamson continued to sputter as a trip to the final four slowly becoming a long shot with a fifth straight setback.