Behind the heroics of Bonbon Batiller, The University of the East Red Warriors shocked the Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles in a come-from-behind 93-91 overtime win to open their 2016 Filoil Flying V Premier Cup campaign on a high note Saturday afternoon at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan City.
The Red Warriors were able to jump on their opponents in the early-goings of the game behind senior RR De Leon. De Leon punched in six straight points to give his team a 10-3 lead midway through the opening quarter. However, Ateneo big men Chibueze Ikeh and Kris Porter changed the pace of the game into a more grinding pace that favored the Blue Eagles. The duo were able to slowly chip the lead away and eventually tie the game at 16-all to end the opening quarter.
Gaining confidence, the Blue Eagles backcourt continuously punished the Red Warriors with head coach Tab Baldwin’s dribble-drive system. Behind rookie Tyler Tio and sophomores Adrian Wong and Aaron Black, the Blue Eagles were able to gain a game-high 12 point lead, 56-44, with 2:48 left in the third canto. On the other end, the Red Warriors were forced to careless turnovers and contested jumpers as they were only able to score the majority of their points from the charity stripe.
“I was kind of disappointed with the way we played in the first half. We were not playing as a team,” UE head coach Derrick Pumaren said. “It was just one pass then shoot right away. We were running away from the system.”
Later in the third quarter, Renz Palma sparked a 10-2 rally that carried over to the fourth quarter to cut the deficit down to just seven, 61-54. Ikeh and Tio were able to settle down the young Blue Eagles squad in the quarter while a triple by the latter with 2:07 left gave Ateneo a 75-68 lead. The Blue Eagles though went ice cold from the field afterwards.
After two free throws by Matt Nieto extended the Ateneo lead to eight, 77-69, with 1:36 remaining in regulation, rookie Alvin Pasaol went on a personal 5-0 run capped by a top of the arc three to cut the lead to just three. Two misses from the foul line by Mike Nieto gave UE a shot at at least tying the game. However, in the next play, Matt Nieto was forced into a turnover that led to a breakaway layup for Edgar Charcos with 15 ticks remaining. To add to that, Matt Nieto fell hard to the floor during that play and had to be rushed to Cardinal Santos in San Juan City afterwards. Two free throws by Mike Nieto followed but was answered by a cold-blooded triple by General Santos-native Batiller to tie the game at 79-all. A miss by Mike Nieto sent the game into extra time.
“I’m proud with the way our guys played during the fourth quarter. They just kept digging and working hard defensively,” Pumaren said.
In overtime, the two teams exchanged baskets at a quick pace to keep things knotted at 83-all. A split by Batiller on the foul line and a turnover by Adrian Wong that led to a breakaway layup by Palma gave UE a three-point cushion with 2:44 left. Ikeh was able to answer right back while a free throw by Vince Tolentino tied that game once more with 2:02 remaining. Batiller was able to find the open lane for a layup followed by a huge block that led to freebies for Palma gave UE a 91-86 lead with 13 ticks remaining. A quick basket by Ikeh was answered with free throws by Palma with five seconds remaining. A meaningless three by Wong with a second remaining ended the game.
“We’ve got a lot to learn. Exactly what I thought that we had, that’s what we are doing,” Ateneo head coach Tab Baldwin said after the loss. “We got a very, very young team and I think we have a bright future.”
Renz Palma led all scorers with 22 markers on an 8/12 shooting clip from the field. He also grabbed eights rebounds and was able to successfully steal the ball twice. Alvin Pasaol added 15 while Batiller chipped-in 14 points.
For the Blue Eagles, Ikeh tallied a huge double-double with 20 points and 16 boards. Rookie Tio added 19 points on 6/15 shooting.
The UE Red Warriors (B, 1-0) will next face the DLSU Green Archers on Friday, May 6 at 2:00pm while the Ateneo Blue Eagles look to bounce back on the same day as they face the Adamson Soaring Falcons at 4:00pm.
The Scores:
UE (93) – Palma 22, Pasaol 15, Batiller 14, De Leon 11, Derige 10, Charcos 8, Acuno 3, Manalang 2, Abanto 2, Larupay 2, Armenion 2, Gagate 1, Penuela 1, Varilla 0, Bartolome 0, Poblete 0.
ADMU (91) – Ikeh 20, Tio 19, Wong A. 13, Black 7, Nieto Ma. 7, Apacible 7, Porter 7, Tolentino 5, Ravena 3, Nieto Mi 2, Wong D. 1, Go 0.
Quarterscores: 16-16, 27-34, 52-58, 79-79, 93-91.
