Ateneo 76 vs. Lyceum 66
by rick olivares
November 23, 2010
San Juan Arena
Even if they were off form and missing a key player, the Ateneo Blue Eagles still had enough firepower to ward off a hard-fighting Lyceum of the Philippines University 66-56 in their matchup at the San Juan Arena.
Despite being rusty, the three-peat champions of the UAAP threatened to blow out the back-to-back Inter-Scholastic Athletic Association champions in the first quarter after center JP Erram scored on a reverse layup for a 31-10 lead. But five errors by the Blue Eagles in the late second quarter were converted into points by the Pirates that brought the deficit to a more manageable level 45-35 at the half.
“After the big lead, we became impatient on offense and the ball stopped moving around,” said center Justin Chua whose jumper from close range and two free throws in the final 70 seconds of the match clinched the match to send the Blue Eagles into the quarterfinals against Mapua who a day earlier ousted NU.
The last time the Blue Eagles and the Pirates faced each other was in the first round of the 2008 Champions League where Ateneo, despite missing Chris Tiu to the national team, thrashed Lyceum 77-56 behind Rabeh Al-Hussaini’s 19 points.
This year’s Pirates, with an intact lineup including ISAA MVP Reggie Rimando, made their third consecutive Sweet 16 appearance in the PCCL by ousting Arellano University 68-65 at the start of the tournament.
The Blue Eagles on the other hand were without junior forward Ryan Buenafe and Nico deChavez who had classes. And for a while, it seemed that Ateneo didn’t miss a beat without the two as they got their running game and frenetic brand of defense going. But the turnovers and foul piled up and Lyceum converted them into 33 points as they drew big games from Fritz Ong and Jepoy Abaya,
Ong converted two free throws off Ateneo counterpart Emman Monfort’s fifth and last foul to bring the deficit down 66-72 but Chua came through in the end.
Ateneo’s junior center also tallied six rebounds, two assists, and one block to tow the Blue Eagles into the next round.
The last time Ateneo played Mapua in the Philippine Collegiate Champions League was in 2006 where the Cardinals behind Kelvin dela Peña ousted the JC Intal-led Blue Eagles. The two teams recently faced each other in the Fr. Martin Cup in the pre-season where Ateneo prevailed 68-64 behind the game long brilliance of Jason Escueta and Kirk Long for their third title in the summer league named after the Loyola Heights-based schools late athletic director Fr. Edgar Martin S.J.
Ateneo 76 – Chua 17, Long 14, Salva 11, Austria 8, Golla 6, Salamat 6, Gonzaga 4, dela Cruz 4, Tiongson 3, Erram 2, Monfort 1, Escueta 0, Balmaceda 0
Lyceum 66 – Ong 20, Abaya 16, Rimando 8, Cayabyab 6, Santos 4, Ko 3, Guevarra 3, Lacap 2, Difuntorum 2, Azores 2
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