Blue Eagles hold off Tamaraws on Ravena's clutch baskets
Kiefer Ravena simply knows when to go into “Beast Mode”.
The Ateneo guard took matters into his own hands in the crunch, leading the Blue Eagles to a pulsating 81-78 victory over the hard-fighting Far Eastern U Tamaraws on Sunday night and into solo second spot in the UAAP Season 77 men’s basketball tournament at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
After setting up the table for his teammates in the first 30 minutes, the 6-foot Ravena pumped in 12 of his game-high 23 points in the payoff canto, highlighted by a personal seven-to-nothing run that allowed Ateneo to extend a shaky two-point lead into a 75-66 cushion going to the last 75 seconds that proved enough to hold off a late charge from FEU.
Athletic wingman Chris Newsome added 17 points while guard Nico Elorde and forward Von Pessumal contributed 12 markers each but it was Ravena who made the biggest difference in the stretch that helped Ateneo bounce back from a 60-64 loss to National U last week and improved to 4-1 overall.
The Tamaraws, who got a team-high 22 points from power forward Mac Belo, saw their two-game wining streak come to a halt as they slipped to 3-2, but not after giving the Blue Eagles a tough fight from the onset.
After going toe-to-toe majority of the way, Ateneo started to take control in the fourth and seemed to wrest full command when Ravena fired those seven straight points.
FEU, however, came back to life and countered back with six straight points, the last courtesy of a Francis Tamsi triple to pull within three with 28.4 seconds to play.
Good thing for the Blue Eagles, they were able to knock down six of their eight freebies that neutralized repeated Tamaraw lay-ups, the last of them off Ravena that virtually pegged the final count with 2.4 seconds left.
FEU’s Mike Tolomia, who finished with 15 points, still had a clear shot at a potential game-tying triple from the half court line but the ball bounced off the glass and out as time expired.
The Main Man: Kiefer Ravena certainly has that killer instinct as he pumped in 12 of his 23 points in the final canto, even single-handedly pulling the Blue Eagles from the jaws of defeat.
Honorable Mention: Providing enough support for Kiefer Ravena were the likes of Chris Newsome, Nico Elorde and Von Pessumal.
Game Turning Point: After Mac Belo made a putback that pulled FEU within 66-68, fellow Sinag Pilipinas member Kiefer Ravena responded big time with seven unanswered points that restored order on Ateneo going to the last 75 seconds of play.
They Said It:
Ateneo coach Bo Perasol: It’s still a win for us. Again, Kiefer delivered for us in the crunch. We played toe-to-toe with them.
Ateneo guard Kiefer Ravena: I think FEU is one of the teams na hindi mo alam kung paano ka tatalunin with the materials that they have, especially with Mac Belo and Mike Tolomia. We just stuck to the game plan.
The scores:
Ateneo (81) — K. Ravena 23, Newsome 17, Elorde 12, Pessumal 12, Capacio 5, A. Tolentino 5, T. Ravena 4, Gotladera 2, V. Tolentino 1, Apacible 0, Babilonia 0.
FEU (78) — Belo 22, Tolomia 15, Hargrove 13, Pogoy 8, Dennison 5, Cruz 4, Tamsi 4, Jose 4, Inigo 3, Ru. Escoto 0, Ri. Escoto 0.
Quarterscores: 14-16; 35-35; 58-54; 81-78.
