Quick-starting Ateneo tramples on Adamson

By Josiah Albelda Posted Jul 13th 2014

It was a start only coach Bo Perasol can dream of.

Ateneo de Manila University stepped hard on the gas from the get-go to maul Adamson University, 79-57, in the 77th UAAP men's basketball tournament Sunday at the Araneta Coliseum.

Raring to make an impression, the Blue Eagles zoomed to a 10-1 lead in the opening minutes and never looked back, leading by as much as 29 points in a one-sided victory.

"It's a new start for us," said star guard Kiefer Ravena, who finished with 22 points, four rebounds and four assists. "New faces, new coaching staff. A new adventure begins for us."

And against a hapless Soaring Falcons crew, that adventure began on the right foot.

Ravena and Chris Newsome outscored Adamson, 13-11, in the first quarter, as the young wards of coach Kenneth Duremdes struggled to buy baskets against Ateneo's suffocating press.

The Eagles continued to pile up the points in the second quarter, with Ravena slamming two dunks in the face of the Falcons' tepid defense. Things didn't get any better for Adamson from there even as Ateneo slightly struggled in the third period.

"I'm just glad to be able to this first win," Perasol said. "Of course, we are young. I told them na if we really dream we are going to win, let's dream all the way."

The Katipunan-based squad shot 52% from within the arc and turned 22 Falcons turnovers into 22 points, also running away with 10 fastbreak points to score their first win of the season.

Nevertheless, Perasol admits that the impressive victory won't really reflect how the Eagles will perform this season.

"I don't think how we played today is going to be the gauge of how we are going to perform this season," the second-year coach said, noting that he is expecting the crew's rookies to get better as the tournament wears on.

Rookie Arvin Tolentino provided scoring for Ateneo, posting 12 points even as rookies John Apacible, Clint Doliguez, and Jay Javelosa combined for 10 markers and 3 rebounds for the Eagles.

Kiefer's younger brother, freshman Thirdy, was scoreless in almost five minutes of action.

"Lahat sila gusto magpatunay," Perasol said of his young guns. "I think it's going to take same time. But with that kind of desire, they're going to be in the right path."

On the other hand, Adamson's offense sputtered and the Falcons made just 16 of 55 attempts (29.1%) while also failing to take advantage of the 28 fouls committed by Ateneo. The team shot 22 of 36 from the free-throw line.

"It's really tough," said rookie coach Kenneth Duremdes after a post-game meeting that lasted more than an hour. "During our tuneup games, we always trail early but we recover. This time, we weren't able to come back."

"We're still trying to find solutions for it."

Wide-bodied rookie Ivan Villanueva was solid from the field and finished with 15 points and nine rebounds while veteran Jansen Rios, who committed three fouls in the first three minutes of the game, had 15.

"Kiefer was Rios' defensive assignment," shared Duremdes. "So when he had three fouls early, dun na bumuhos yung Ateneo."

The scores:

Ateneo (79) — K. Ravena 22, A. Tolentino 12, Newsome 12, Pessumal 8, Elorde 6, Javelosa 4, Apacible 4, Asistio 3, Capacio 2, Gotladera 2, Babilonia 2, Doliguez 2, V. Tolentino 0, F. Ravena 0, Lim 0, Porter 0

Adamson (57) — Villanueva 15, Rios 15, Trollano 7, Ochea 7, Inigo 4, Gumtang 4, Baytan 2, Aquino 2, Nalos 1, Polican 0, Monteclaro 0, Barrera 0, Garcia 0

Quarterscores: 24-11, 47-20, 62-35, 79-57