ADAMSON University ended the first round in style, drubbing University of the Philippines (UP), 72-46, on Thursday in the 74th University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) men’s basketball tournament at the Araneta Coliseum.
Playing solidly on both ends of the court, the Falcons pulled away in the second period, led by Alex Nuyles’s scoring and Lionel Manyara’s defensive presence inside to help their team finish No. 2 after the first round of eliminations with a 5-2 win-loss mark.
Nuyles had a game-high 21 points, highlighted by a two-handed slam while Manyara scored only four markers but had a season-high seven blocks, the most since Far Eastern University’s Aldrech Ramos also made seven in the Tamaraws’ 80-66 victory over La Salle on August 28 last year.
“I’m happy for our last game. This is a statement game for us,” said Falcons head coach Leo Austria, whose wards held the Fighting Maroons to a season-low 46 points.
“Before, we were being criticized for not handling the endgame very well. I think we finished very well today and we were able to limit their scorers [Mike] Silungan and [Jett] Manuel,” he added.
Lester Alvarez chipped in 16 points, while Eric Camson contributed 11 for Adamson, which registered its best first-round finish under Austria.
Nuyles, who also had five rebounds and three steals, was responsible in providing the Falcons a big finishing kick, unloading nine of his total output in the final period to hand UP its fifth loss against two losses.
“Gusto lang namin talaga manalo. ’Yung pinaghirapan namin noong preseason, ito na ’yun,” said Nuyles, who shot three-of-four from the three-point area.
Austria said finishing second in the first round also gives them a better schedule for the next phase as they will face No. 1 Ateneo (7-0) in the last game of the eliminations.
“We need three more wins para sure sa Final Four and I think achievable naman. And by the time na makaharap namin ang Ateneo, siguro nasa Final Four na kami,” he said.
UP was led by Silungan’s 12 markers but the six-foot-two shooting guard was 0-of-seven from the three-point area. As a team, the Fighting Maroons were one-of-14 in the rainbow territory.
A big disappointment for the Diliman-based team was Manuel, who after averaging 15 points per game in the first five games, was held to a combined 10 points in his last two assignments.
And with Manuel struggling, the Fighting Maroons groped to get their game early on.
After an 8-6 first quarter lead, Adamson started to break the game wide open in the second canto, outscoring UP, 27-17, to carry a 35-23 halftime lead.
The Falcons scored the first 12 points of the third period, all coming from Nuyles and Alvarez, to erect a 47-23 cushion with 7:23 remaining.
UP never had a serious run from there on while Adamson continued to pound them offensively and even led by as many as 28 points, 69-41, on Allen Etrone’s three-pointer, the Falcons’ 11th three-pointer in 19 attempts.
Their 11 three-pointers were the most this season and Adamson’s 12 blocks were also a season-high since FEU’s 13 in August 21, 2005 against the Green Archers.
In the second game, De La Salle almost blew a 22-point lead as it recovered just in time to hack out a 74-71 squeaker past pesky University of Santo Tomas (UST) and grab a share of third spot with FEU with a 4-3 win-loss mark.
Jerelan Tampus grabbed a crucial offensive rebound off his own missed free throw then sank two precious bonus shots to peg the final score with 11.5 ticks left.
UST had the chance to send the game to overtime but rookie Kevin Ferrer missed a three-pointer in the ensuing play as time expired.
Norbert Torres showed his best game yet in his first season with De La Salle with 21 points, eight rebounds and five blocks. Tampus added 14 markers.
“I’m happy we got this win. Our target was to win five straight [after 0-2 start] but we got only four but I’m still satisfied with our first-round performance,” said Green Archers head coach Dindo Pumaren.
Karim Abdul paced the Growling Tigers with 21 points and 11 rebounds, while Jeric Fortuna chipped in 20 points but sat out the last four minutes of the game after hurting his left foot after a bad fall.
UST ended the first round with a 3-4 record for fifth spot.
IN PHOTO -- THE African “imports”—Ifeanyi Mbah of University of the Philippines (left) and Lionel Manyara of Adamson University—provide a side show in Thursday’s duel. --NONOY LACZA
