NOT for Long, Ateneo out of disgrace
Thursday, 30 August 2007 13 Comments
ATENEO’S victory won’t wait too long for Long.
Kirk Long scored a buzzer-beating long jumper to give the Blue Eagles a hard-earned 72-71 triumph over the defending UAAP champs – University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers – August 30 in the 70th UAAP men’s basketball tournament at the Araneta Coliseum.
“Just in the nick of time but I’m lucky it went in,� said the American freshman shooting guard Long who delivered nine of his 10 points in fourth period with three steals. “Everybody is hugging me after making that big time shot.
When Blue Eagles big man Clifford Arao was trapped by the Tigers’ defense in the shaded lane, he immediately kicked out the ball to Long with time running out.
Long dribbled for some space and surprisingly pumped in for the buzzer-beater at the left flank, turning the entire Blue Eagles gallery to a frenzy.
That important win will put Ateneo in third place with a 6-4 slate while UST dropped to 6-5 at fifth place, followed by Far Eastern University in sixth with the same 6-5 slate.
“It was a tough game, a defensive struggle,� said Ateneo mentor Norman Black. “We did a good job rotating the ball and Long made a huge shot, although the play wasn’t set for him but for Chris Tiu. That was a big shot in the arm for us.�
The Tigers got a precarious 71-70 lead after Khasim Mirza drove for an easy lay-up with 19.3 seconds left before Black called a timeout.
Clifford Arao paced Ateneo with 20 points and grabbed eight boards, while Siverino Baclao had 11 points and Chris Tiu contributed nine points.
Long finished Ateneo’s strong 8-0 attack in the last quarter with an acrobatic lay up for a 63-61 bubble with 5:11 minutes left in the clock.
Jervy Cruz led UST with 22 points and 18 rebounds, while Mirza and Anthony Espiritu added 11 and 10 points, respectively.
UST enjoyed ten-point margins on several occasions, the last one from an Espiritu three at the corner with 2:09 minutes left in third quarter for 55-45 count.
But Ateneo refused to roll over and die despite hitting only 23-out-of-58 Total Field Goals (39.7%).
ADMU – 72
Arao 20, Baclao 11, Long 10 Tiu 9, Escueta 6, Nkemakolam 5, Al-Hussaini 4, Monfort 3, Reyes 2, Laterre 2, Salamat 0
UST – 71
Cruz 22, Mirza 11, Espiritu 10, Cortez 6, Canlas 6, Taylor 4, Ababou 4, Gile 3, Cuan 2, Allera 2, Dizon 1
Quarter Scores: 13-18, 29-36, 50-57, 72-71
(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
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