Backcourt aces fuel key victories

MANILA, Philippines–Ateneo coach Norman Black had made it clear that he expected more from veteran guard Eric Salamat. This time, Salamat delivered and helped the Blue Eagles turn a disastrous start into an 82-65 ripping of the relentless National U Bulldogs for a share of third place in the 73rd UAAP men’s basketball tournament Saturday at the Araneta Coliseum. The Eagles regained their bearings behind Salamat, who played his best game yet with 20 points, to key the back-to-back champions comeback from 14 points down, 14-28,  in the first half. Kirk Long nailed all of his four attempts from beyond the arc before finishing with 19 points and Nico Salva also stepped up  in a big second-half run that put the Eagles on top by as many as 17 points, 71-54. “Guys like Eric and Ryan (Buenafe), I hold them to a higher responsibility because they are the better players on  the team and I expect more from them. I think they played well today.” said Ateneo coach Norman Black.  The Blue Eagles, who rebounded from last week’s 66-63 loss against rival La Salle, forged a three-way tie  at 3-2 with the idle Green Archers and the University of Santo Tomas Tigers. Earlier, Paul Lee drained two clutch triples in the last two minutes as University of the East halted a worrisome four-game losing skid, 59-54, against the University of the Philippines. The all-around playmaker capped his heroics with a step-back three-pointer with 17.7 seconds left for the final tally after UP’s Fil-Am rookie Mike Silugan knocked in a trey that trimmed the gap to 56-54. “We’re not here to win just one game. Our morale was down so we have to make sure that we’re still there, get the team together and get our acts together,”  said coach Lawrence Chongson of his Warriors, last year’s runner-up.     Lee said his foot injury continues to bother him, but the standout guard still came through in crucial stretches to finish with a game-high 23 points on top of seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. “I’m just at 60 percent,” said Lee, who sustained a hairline fracture on his right foot during the pre-season. The Bulldogs slipped to 2-4, while the Maroons, who played minus the injured Woody Co, remained as the only winless squad in five outings. Salamat fired 12 points in the first half that pushed the Eagles within 33-34, before drilling six in a 10-3 run at the start of the second half that put them in control for good, 43-37.  “I was off in the first few games because of an injury (knee contusion), so it helped that I’m now 100 percent,” said Salamat, who averaged only 7.3 points  in his first four games. Salamat and Long registered five rebounds and five assists each and  both also combined for five of Ateneo’s eight steals. “We didn’t want to get into a halfcourt game, we wanted to play a fastbreaking game,” said Black. “That’s really our goal, to get out and run as much as possible.”  Silungan towed UP back in the game after drilling 10 straight points in a 14-0 run that pushed the  Maroons ahead, 40-33, after trailing by as many as 10 points, 21-31, in the third quarter. Lee put the Warriors ahead anew, 50-49, in a fourth-quarter run that also had Ken Acibar and Garrick Ayala chipping in. A Silungan layup gave the Maroons their last taste of the lead, 51-50, before Lee and Paul Zamar nailed back-to-back triples for a 56-51 UE advantage with 1:34 minutes left. Co, who rode the bench the entire game, sustained an injury on his right foot in the Maroons’ last game. The scores: First Game UE 59–Lee 23, Martinez 10, Acibar 6, Casajeros 5, Razon 4, Ayala 4, Zamar 3, Enguio 2, Reyes 2, Tagarda 0, Duran 0. UP 54–Silungan 20, Sison 11, Padilla 6, Gomez 6, Saret 3, Reyes 3, Lopez 2, Hipolito 2, Maniego 1, Manuel 0. Quarters: 8-15, 29-21, 36-40, 59-54 Second Game ATENEO 82–Salamat 20, Long 19, Salva 14, Dela Cruz 6, Golla 6, Tiongson 5, Monfort 5, Gonzaga 3, Escueta 2, Buenafe 2, Erram 0, Chua 0. NU 65–Hermosisima 18, Malanday 12, Mbe 11, Khobuntin 7, Terso 5, Magat 4, Javillonar 3, Ponferrada 3, Tungcul 2, Ludovice 0, Singh 0, Baloran 0. Quarters: 11-17, 33-34, 61-48, 82-65