SAN JUAN, Philippines (Eagle News) — National University and Ateneo de Manila, two of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines’ perennial men’s basketball contenders, cruised to separate wins over their foils to enter the semi-final round of the Filoil Flying V Hanes Premier Cup at The Arena in San Juan City on Tuesday.
Ateneo opened up the day by turning back Perpetual Help by a count of 68-59, while National U rattled the upstart Adamson five, 65-57 in the second game.
Adrian Wong registered a team-best 13 points with five assists. Chibueze Ikeh and Anton Assistio contributed 12 points each, with Ikeh having eight rebounds..
Ateneo has had a tough campaign in the summer leagues, losing multiple recruits including ex-San Sebastian forward CJ Perez due to academic deficiencies. Deputy Head Coach Sandy Arrespacochaga said that the team is managing the challenges well.
“So far, we’ve encountered lots of ups and downs this summer not just in the tournament on and off the court,” said Arrespacochaga. “We like to continue learning through all of these ups and downs.”
“We emphasize our defensive mentality, so we’ll challenge them defensively if we can step it up. We shot better in the second half, field goal wise, and also from the foul line,” he added. “So their positive steps towards improving something that we were doing poorly in the first half.”
Bright Akhuetie topped the Altas’ attack with a total of 15 points and 15 rebounds.
The Bulldogs, on the other hand, managed to stave off the Franz Pumaren-mentored Falcons due to the efforts of Med Salim, who topped all scorers with 12 markers.
National U Head Coach Eric Altamirano said that they encountered “a completely different” Adamson team, in contrast to the cellar-dwelling squad of the past three seasons. He noted the steady play of Salim and Rev Diputado, who took over the leadership roles.
“Med [Salim] really played well for us especially on our defense. We were struggling with Matthew [Aquino] and Matt Salem,” said Altamirano.
“[Rev Diputado] was the leader out there. He was calling the plays, attacking the basket, and more than that ‘yung defense nya,” he added. “I think, ‘yung mga perimeter players ng Adamson were really dangerous, were really good outside shooters.”
The Blue Eagles await the winner of the De La Salle versus Far Eastern University contest, while the Bulldogs stand to face the victor of the all-National Collegiate Athletic Association duel between San Beda College and Arellano University. Caryl Lyn Surio and Baybielyn Bautista
