Blue Eagles gift coach with 100th win
The man known as “Mr. 100 Percent” in the pro league now has 100 victories as a coach in the collegiate league.
Fully brandishing its fearsome brand of basketball in the second half, surging Ateneo thrashed hapless University of the East 68-51 Saturday night to seize the solo lead in the UAAP Season 75 men’s basketball action at the MOA Arena, the process gifting coach Norman Black with his 100th UAAP victory.
Greg Slaughter topscored with 14 markers and 10 boards while five other teammates added at least five points each as the Blue Eagles turned up the heat with a 17-5 barrage in the third canto en route to their fourth straight win and fifth overall in six outings.
Kiefer Ravena scattered 12 points and five assists while Tonino Gonzaga had nine markers in another one-sided victory that enabled Black to reach the century mark.
“It just means I’ve been around for a long time, probably,” said Ateneo coach Norman Black, tongue-in-cheek. “It’s a pretty good accomplishment but I’d rather have a championship this year.”
Black, 54, took over the coaching mantle in 2005 vice Sandy Arespacochaga then turned Ateneo into one of the country’s elite teams, winning four titles in an eight-year span.
The Blue Eagles are bidding to give Black a fitting swan song with their fifth straight title since the American coach is set to call the shots for Talk ‘N Text after this season.
Chris Javier finished with 16 points points and four boards rebounds while Pedrito Gallanza contributed 12 and Roi Sumang had 10 for the Red Warriors, who momentarily led 7-2 early but got completely engulfed by the Blue Eagles’ superior talent in the second half and reeled to their fourth consecutive setback.
“Luckily there’s a halftime (break). We came up with better energy in the second half. Good thing they responded well,” added Black, whose charges got outhustled by the Red Warriors on the boards in the first 20 minutes 14-24.
The Blue Eagles, however, fully asserted themselves in the second half to make it a 55-47 rebounding edge at the end.
Holding a slim 37-34 at the break, Ateneo broke loose with a 20-2 onslaught bridging the third and fourth periods anchored on its stymieing defense as UE fumbled and never recovered its bearings back.
So dominating were the Blue Eagles that they led as many as 23 points and Black utilized his 16-man bench to the hilt in wrapping the game up.
