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MANILA, Philippines–Cignal-Ateneo kicked off its 2019 PBA D-League Aspirants’ campaign with a rout of Go for Gold-St. Benilde, 103-75, Thursday at Ynares Sports Arena.
The defending UAAP champions’ offense was on point all game long, shooting 55% from the field and 45% from three.
Isaac Go paced the Blue Eagles with 21 points on 4-of-6 shooting from downtown, leading a 24-3 blast in the second period that broke the game wide open and gave them a 44-17 lead.
Adrian Wong also heated up and scored 15 points all but two from three-point land while Matt Nieto contributed 14 points, seven assists, and three rebounds.
“This isn’t how we play in the UAAP. We’ll press a lot more, we’ll do a lot of other things that we really can’t do when our numbers are down. So offensively, I was surprised, we played pretty well,” said head coach Tab Baldwin.
“We’re not doing a lot really, but the guys played very efficiently and that’s a good thing.”
Angleo Kouame, meanwhile, did his damage inside on his way to 13 points, 18 rebounds, four blocks, and two steals
Thirdy Ravena missed the game to academic obligations.
The PBA D-League opened the new season on Thursday with a record 20 teams. Celest Flores-Colina