CHRIS Tiu scored a career-high 29 points while Rabeh Al-Hussaini
had 24 as Ateneo downed UST 85-76 yesterday in the UAAP men’s basketball
tournament at the Philsports Complex.
The Blue Eagles strengthened their hold on the lead as they
improved their win-loss record to 8-1.
"Good for us that two of our top players really played well.
They made crucial baskets down the stretch," said Ateneo coach Norman Black.
The Tigers had looked able to match the Eagles in the early
goings but failed to keep up in the second half when Tiu and Al Hussaini caught
fire.
UST came close 53-54 in the third but Al-Hussaini went on a
scoring spree, making a mockery of the Tiger defense by scoring 10 straight.
Tiu came up with 11 points later in the fourth quarter.
UST actually dominated the rebounding 47-29 but Ateneo’s
fine shooting clip of 29-for-59 proved too much.
"They still hurt us on the boards but we were able to shoot
a higher percentage on the floor which helped us tonight," said Black.
Jervy Cruz had 23 points and hauled down 18 rebounds while
Dylan Ababou had 17 markers for the Tigers, who suffered their fourth defeat in
nine outings, sliding to fifth spot behind fourth-running University of the
East.
"As long as we can stop Ababou and Jervy from exploding, we
have a chance of winning the game. We don’t expect to stop the two guys. What
we don’t want is them to explode like a 30-point game and to shut down the rest
of them," Black said.
Earlier, FEU snapped its two-game skid with a 70-62 win over Adamson.
