Blue Eagles storm back, overcome Bulldogs

MANILA, Philippines -- Ateneo pulled away late in the fourth quarter to soar past National University, 87-76, in the UAAP Season 89 men’s basketball tournament Saturday at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City. 

The Blue Eagles trailed by double digits early on but recovered and broke the game wide open late.

Kieffer Alas scored 18 points, five rebounds, four assists, three steals and a block. Andrew Bongo added 16, while Travis Roberts and Shawn Tuano had 14 apiece. 

After trailing by 17 points in the second quarter, Ateneo took a 14-point lead, 56-42, in the third after an Alas triple. 

But NU stormed back, and the ballgame turned into a nip-and-tuck affair. 

A jumper by Reinhard Jumamoy made it a 73-74, with 3:04 remaining in the game. 

Alas then heated up, scoring 10 of the Blue Eagles’ 14-0 run that gave them an 87-74 lead with about 15 seconds remaining, while the Bulldogs simply could not buy a bucket late. 

EJ Kapihe had 12 points and seven rebounds off the bench for the Katipunan-based squad. 

Tebol Garcia paced NU with 18 points and three rebounds. Jumamoy chipped in 15 markers while Paul Francisco had 14. 

The Blue Eagles, now rose to solo first with a 3-1 win-loss record, while the Bulldogs dropped to 2-2.