Eagles, Archers topple UAAP rivals, get ready for showdown

Fierce rivals La Salle and Ateneo primed themselves up for a highly-anticipated explosive showdown next week after hurdling past their respective rivals Sunday in the UAAP men’s basketball tournament at the Philsports Arena in Pasig. The Blue Eagles rode on a breakout game by Justin Chua to outlast a determined University of Santo Tomas Tigers, 68-56, to pick up their second straight win in this eight-team cast. The Green Archers, on the other hand, played true to form after absorbing a sound beating at the hands of the National University Bulldogs, last time around. This time, coach Dindo Pumaren and his troop brought their A-game against the University of the East Warriors and won with ease, 82-63, in the other game. It was also the second win in three matches for the Archers, who forged a three-way tie with their fierce nemesis and the vastly-improved Falcons in second to fourth places. The Archers and the Eagles notched an important win headed to their expected blockbuster showdown – their first meeting in the tournament – this season. For Pumaren, his first meeting against his former team – the Warriors – was nothing personal. But his wards buckled down to serious business in the second half when they turned a close match into an ugly rout. “We played bad (against NU), but there’s no excuse for that," said Pumaren, referring to his team’s previous setback. “They played good defense and I’m just glad the boys stepped up." Pumaren got the win against the team he coached for four seasons, including a finals entry against La Salle in 2007. But the win wasn’t something special for the former PBA player known as “The Bullet." “It’s just another game," he added. The Archers zoomed to a 51-36 lead on a 9-0 run, which was started by a Maui Villanueva three-point play. The Red Warriors cut the deficit to 10 points, 58-48, but the Archers finished the third period with eight consecutive points. Earlier, Chua had a coming-out-party as the Eagles more than made up for a hurting Eric Salamat in clobbering the Tigers. Salamat, who was slowed down by a knee injury, was contented orchestrating the plays for his squad. But Ateneo’s frontline proved to be too much against their smaller UST counterparts led by Chua, who terrorized their rivals for 17 points. The lefty, former high school standout from Chiang Kai Shek, showed his versatility in offense. He knocked in two consecutive jumpers to extend the lead of Ateneo by six and later drained another outside shot that made it a 59-52 lead with 3:51 remaining. Chua capped his long-game brilliance with a nifty lay up for a 61-52 Eagles’ advantage. Ateneo coach Norman Black has nothing but praises for his slotman. "Justin (Chua) has a great attitude. He's been working hard in practice and he's not complaining when he's not playing. I gave him a chance in this game and it worked out well for us," said Black, whose team is seeking a rare grandslam in the tournament. - RCJ, GMANews.TV