Kiefer Ravena's game-winner lifts Ateneo over UST

The last time the Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles shared the floor with the University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers, their reign as five-time UAAP champions met a brutal end.

This time, the Blue Eagles made sure that they would come out victorious as Kiefer Ravena nailed a game-winning floater with 3.7 seconds left in the game to give Ateneo a 63-61 victory, Wednesday afternoon at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.

It was a seesaw ball game with both teams getting big shots and big stops. The only difference was that Ravena made the shot and the Tigers did not have a timeout left to draw up a final play.

With 23 seconds left in the game, Ateneo assistant coach Ronnie Magsanoc designed a play with Chris Newsome acting as a decoy. Newsome received the ball from beyond the three-point area, which took Karim Abdul out of the paint.

Ravena then got the ball, squeezed through two defenders, and made a difficult floater to give them the lead. The Tigers had to run a play from the opposite baseline and all they got was a halfcourt shot attempt from Kevin Ferrer that fell short.

The Tigers had a foul to give during the last play and they could have used it on Ravena when he temporarily lost control of his dribble. However, they were not able to stop the King Eagle from scoring a game winner.

Newsome led Ateneo with 18 points and five rebounds although he had five turnovers in the game. Ravena added 17 markers while rookie Arvin Tolentino had 14 points, 12 rebounds, and two blocks.

UST was led by Karim Abdul who had 19 points and 12 rebounds, beasting over Ateneo’s much smaller defenders. Aljon Mariano also had his breakout game with 17 points but he fouled with 48 seconds left in the game.

Ateneo fell behind early in the first quarter because they could not figure out how to stop UST’s inside game. However, the later Eagles bounced back to keep in step with the Tigers. Tolentino sank a corner triple off a Ravena pass to cut UST’s lead down to a single point, 15-14, at the end of the first quarter.

The second quarter featured three scoring runs from both teams. Ateneo opened the proceedings with a 10-0 run to grab a 24-15 lead. Abdul scored two free throws at the 4:51 mark of the second for UST’s first two points of the quarter. This started their own 10-0 run to get back a 25-24 lead.

However, Ateneo finished the first half with baskets from Ravena and Tolentino to grab a 28-25 lead for the Blue Eagles.

The Tigers grabbed a 42-38 lead midway through the third quarter, which prompted Ateneo to call a timeout. The Eagles responded with a three from Newsome and three free throws from Nico Elorde to mount a 44-42 advantage.

However, Kevin Ferrer replied with a triple on the other end. Luckily for Ateneo, UST’s bench was called for a technical foul leading to two free throws from Von Pessumal and a 46-45 lead for Ateneo heading into the final quarter.

The fourth quarter turned out to be a classic with both teams making big shots down the stretch.

Aljon Mariano scored a go-ahead triple at the 1:48 mark to give UST a 58-57 lead. Ravena had a split from the line in the next play to tie the ball game.

Karim Abdul then scored an easy basket down low but Newsome made an and-one on the other end to give Ateneo a 61-60 lead.

With less than 30 seconds left in the game, Ateneo could have given up three more free throws before reaching the penalty but Newsome fouled Ferrer in the act of shooting, leading to two free throws. Ferrer only managed to sink the back end of his free throws to set up Ravena’s game-winning floater.

The Main Man: Kiefer Ravena once again rescued the Blue Eagles by scoring the game’s most crucial shot. He struggled from the field, only making 7 of 18 shots including six misses from the three point area but he did not miss when Ateneo badly needed a basket.

Honorable Mentions: Newsome and Tolentino combined for 31 points in the game. Tolentino’s outside shooting took Abdul out of the shaded area which opened it up for Newsome’s drives. Nico Elorde did not have a very good shooting game but he did chip in six points, five rebounds, and seven assists.

Game Turning Point: The game was not over until Ferrer’s prayer from halfcourt failed to find the bottom of the net. The game featured 15 lead changes and five deadlocks and it only turned with Ravena’s last basket.

He Said It:

Ateneo head coach Bo Perasol: First of all, I want to give credit to coach Ronnie Magsanoc because he was the one who designed that last play. I was telling Kiefer not to take those floaters anymore because he was missing throughout the game but Kiefer did not miss when the team needed him to score the most.

The scores:

ADMU 63: Newsome 18, Ravena 17, Tolentino 14, Elorde 6, Pessumal 2, Gotladera 2, Porter 2, Capacio 2.

UST 61: Abdul 19, Mariano 17, Vigil 11, Ferrer 4, Daquioag 4, Sheriff 4, Lao 2.

Quarters: 14-15, 28-25, 46-45, 63-61.