Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
Defending champion Ateneo didn’t waste any time in going back to the title round after whipping Far Eastern University, 80-61, in the UAAP Season 81 men’s basketball Final Four Sunday night at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The first-seeded Blue Eagles (12-2) own a twice-to-beat advantage but that didn’t matter as they displayed their championship class to bamboozle the fourth-seeded Tamaraws, who couldn’t get into their offensive rhythm especially in the third quarter where they trailed by as much as 31.
Ateneo started hot early with a 17-9 lead after the first, including an 8-0 opening run, and sustained that momentum throughout the whole match.
Things turned from bad to worse for the Tamaraws when point guard Alec Stockton got ejected for trying to punch Thirdy Ravena at the 7:12 mark of the third.
Ravena then gave the Blue Eagles a 48-24 buffer after 3-pointer right following the incident.
“We knew that coming into this game we would go up against a tough FEU team who had two great wins against Adamson and De La Salle so we wanted to make sure that from the start we’d lock on especially on the defensive end,” said Ateneo assistant coach Sandy Arespacochaga.
FEU got into the Final Four by the skin of its teeth after ending the elimination round on a three-game winning streak capped of by an 82-56 beating of Adamson.
The Tamaraws then got into a fourth place playoff with the Green Archers that they won 71-70, but that momentum didn’t carry over as the Blue Eagles showed their mettle.
It was all Ateneo throughout the game and Ravena gave the Blue Eagles a 31-point lead, 59-28, with a three-pointer with 2:53 left in the third quarter.
Ravena finished with 22 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and two steals before fouling out with 3:33 left in the game while Angelo Kouame had an 18-point, 11-rebound double-double for the Blue Eagles.
Barkley Eboña led all FEU scorers with nine points while the graduating Arvin Tolentino, who averaged 13.4 points before this game, managed to score just five points on 2-of-4 shooting.