MANILA, Philippines—Ateneo booked a fourth straight Finals appearance Thursday even as Far Eastern University forged a winner-take-all duel with Adamson for the last title berth in the UAAP men’s basketball tournament.
The Eagles bucked the absence of the cramps-stricken Greg Slaughter in the endgame to eliminate gutsy University of Santo Tomas, 69-66.
The Tigers unloaded three consecutive triples to trim the Eagles’ 63-53 lead to just a point, 67-66, with 5.8 seconds remaining before Nico Salva sealed the win with two free throws, with 2.7 ticks left.
The Tamaraws roared to a 52-31 advantage late in the third period before holding off the Falcons, 59-49, to arrange a do-or-die showdown for a title slot at 3 p.m. this Sunday also the Big Dome.
Slaughter powered the Eagles with 17 points, built on a 7-of-9 shooting clip, and had eight rebounds and three blocks, before sitting out the last four minutes due to cramps.
Kiefer Ravena, this season’s top rookie, had 13 markers and Salva added 12 points, four boards and four assists.
“We had control of the game for the most part, but in the end, they (Tigers) started making three-point shots which is their strength,” said Ateneo coach Norman Black. “Luckily our defense held up, particularly our transition defense because they had a couple of chances for a fastbreak layup.”
The Tigers blew several opportunities to move ahead, even turning the ball on two consecutive plays in the final minute.
Jeric Fortuna also had a shot at forging an extra period, but missed a long three-point attempt at the buzzer.
RR Garcia paced the Tamaraws with 19 points and Terrence Romeo contributed 16 points and eight rebounds.
“I kept reminding the team that we shouldn’t hurry,” Garcia said after the Tamaraws saw their lead go down to just seven, 56-49, with three minutes to go.
“We don’t want to take a break yet,” added FEU coach Bert Flores. “We played good defense. We made sure to deny (Alex) Nuyles and (Lester) Alvarez the ball.”
Jeric Teng—who nailed one of key triples along with Fortuna and Chris Camus—was forced to stop the clock by fouling Nico Salva, whose two free throws cushioned the Eagles’ lead with 2.7 ticks left.
“Anytime you lose a game it’s always difficult to get your confidence back,” Black said five days after his Eagles failed to complete a rare 14-game sweep following a 46-62 setback against Adamson in their final elimination game.
“We had to go through a whole week of people questioning us whether we’re still hungry or whether we peaked too early. We did a good job of bouncing back.”
Cameroonian center Karim Abdul scored 11 of the Tigers’ 18 points in the first quarter before finishing with 16 markers, 16 rebounds, two steals and two blocks.
“I’m disappointed, we were targeting the Finals,” said coach Pido Jarencio after his Tigers wrapped up their season. “We didn’t overachieve. Our team really had a lot more to show.”
Adamson coach Leo Austria was similarly disappointed after the Tamaraws foiled the Falcons’ first try to advance to the Finals for the first time since 1992.
“We had problems with our execution,” said Austria. “We weren’t able to adjust to their (Tamaraws) swarming defense. We couldn’t set our plays and we had lapses.”
The double-header drew a combined attendance of 24,828, including 15,374 in the Falcons-Tams duel, as Adamson suspended its classes since noon yesterday to encourage its students to support the squad.
The scores:
First Game
ATENEO 69—Slaughter 17, Ravena 13, Salva 12, Chua 9, Tiongson 5, Gonzaga 5, Monfort 4, Long 4, Golla 0, Austria 0.
UST 66—Abdul 16, Camus 13, Teng 11, Ferrer 10, Fortuna 8, Afuang 5, Tan 3, Sheriff 0, Pe 0, Lo 0, Ungria 0.
Quarters: 18-18, 38-30, 52-40, 69-66
Second Game
FEU 59—Romeo 19, Garcia 16, Exciminiano 8, Ramos 7, Bringas 6, Escoto 2, Tolomia 1, Pogoy 0, Cruz 0.
ADAMSON 49—Nuyles 20, Camson 6, Cañada 5, Alvarez 5, Brondial 4, Lozada 4, Colina 3,Manyara 2, Etrone 0, Cabrera 0.
Quarters: 11-9, 29-23, 52-32, 59-49