Eagles claw Tigers anew

By Jonas Terrado - Manila Bulletin - August 15, 2008

Not even the thunderstorm could cool off Ateneo star Chris Tiu yesterday.

In what could be his finest game in a stellar collegiate career, Tiu sizzled for a career-high 29 points as Ateneo blew past University of Santo Tomas, 85-76, to boost its Final Four bid in the UAAP basketball tournament on a wet day at the Philsports Arena.

The 5-foot-11 Tiu highlighted his game-long brilliance with three triples aside from posting a near-perfect 14-of-15 shooting from the free throw area to help the Eagles notch their 8th win in 9 games.

In the first game, Far Eastern University snapped a two-game losing streak behind Marlon Adolfo’s second-half explosion to beat Adamson University, 70-62.

Adolfo scattered 15 of his 18 points in the last two quarters as the Tamaraws erected a 14-point lead en route to their 6th win in 9 starts.

For the second time, Rabeh Al-Hussaini outshone reigning MVP and UST counterpart Jervy Cruz as the 6-foot-6 center tallied 24 points and five rebounds.

"Our top two players really played well, they really made some crucial shots in the end," said Ateneo coach Norman Black. "UST still hurt us on the boards but we were able to shoot a high percentage from the floor which really helped us out."

Black, however, remained cautious about their efforts before the end of the season.

"The key is that we understand that we are the best team but we have to play our A game every time, it’s not time for us to be confident," said Black. "Our aim is to get into the Final Four and play our best game come September."

To underscore his strength down low, Al-Hussaini converted 10 consecutive points at one point as Ateneo eventually took a 63-55 lead in the third while Tiu had 11 in the final canto, most of them from the stripe as the the Blue Eagles took a 75-62 edge.

That run was aided by a triple from Eric Salamat with 2:21 left in the game.

Salamat, still hampered by a discolated jaw, made 14 points in 21 minutes off the bench.

Cruz, the reigning Most Valuable Player, finished with 23 points and 18 rebounds, 13 of which came in the first half. Dylan Ababou finished with 17 points but missed four shots from the three-point arc with rookie Clark Bautista nailing 12 markers.

Ateneo grabbed an early 24-11 lead in the second quarter but Cruz and Ababou to combine for 18 points in the second quarter to cut the margin to 38-35 at halftime.

Adolfo, also hauled down 10 rebounds in his 29 minutes of action.

"Natutuwa ako at nagstep-up siya (Adolfo) bilang big man dahil ang daming foul trouble ng mga big men ko," FEU coach Glenn Capacio said.

Benedict Fernandez chipped in 14 points –all in the second half – while pointguard Mark Barroca added 13 markers.

FEU led 32-30 at halftime behind Barroca’s 10 points, but Adolfo and Fernandez conspired for 23 points for a 59-45 advantage in the third.

Adamson fell into a three-way tie for last place with NU and University of the Philippines with similar 2-7 cards.

Mike Galinato led Adamson with 12 points while Colina finished with a double-double of 10 markers and 11 boards.