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| Thirdy Ravena waxed hot with a career-high 22 points for Ateneo in a win over UP (File/Denver Lachica) |
By Ricky Manliguis
PASAY CITY—Thirdy Ravena dropped a
career-high 22 points to lead Ateneo to a 79-64 drubbing of University of the
Philippines in the first game of Wednesday’s UAAP Season 79 men’s basketball
action at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Held scoreless after the first quarter,
Ravena exploded in time as the Eagles got its fourth win in six games, its
first back-to-back victories this season, and 14th straight against
its Katipunan neighbors.
After a tight 58-54 lead at the start
of the fourth peiod, Ateneo then clamped down the UP offensive, limiting the
Maroons to just 10 points in the pay-off period while scoring 21 on its own.
Ravena went berserk to the basket, scoring
eight in the fourth, including a drive for a 77-60 advantage on a lay-up. He
capped off his exploits with a highlight chasedown block on a Javier Gomez de
Liaño lay-up.
Eagerly egged on in the sidelines by
older brother Kiefer, the sophomore swingman also grabbed 10 rebounds while
shooting an impressive 70 percent from the field (7-of-10).
Chibueze Ikeh added
14 points and seven rebounds and Anton Assistio had 10 for Ateneo, which shot 47.27
percent from the floor as a team. It also had a plus-36 advantage in bench
scoring while dishing out 16 assists, nine more than UP’s five dimes.
Paul Desiderio once again paced UP,
now on its fifth loss in six outings, with 25 points on 10-for-17 field goals
plus six rebounds, even as Jett Manuel issued 17 markers and eight rebounds.
Ateneo next meets archrivals La Salle
in a mammoth match-up on Sunday.
The scores:
Ateneo 79 – Ravena 22, Ikeh 14, Asistio 10, Nieto Mi 7, Tolentino
7, Wong 6, Nieto Ma 5, Verano 4, Babilonia 2, Porter 2, Go 0, Ildefonso 0,
Mendoza 0
UP 64 – Desiderio 25, Manuel 17, Lim 7, Moralde 6,
Dario 4, Espanola 3, Prado 2, Harris 0, Webb 0, Asilum 0, Gomez de Liano 0,
Jaboneta 0, Longa 0, Vito 0, Romero 0
Quarterscores: 13-17, 38-29, 58-54, 79-64
Follow him on Twitter: @Teaching_Hero
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