UNIVERSITY of the Philippines ended Ateneo’s reign with a 57-46 win to secure its third consecutive championship appearance in the UAAP men’s basketball tournament yesterday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

The top-ranked Fighting Maroons used a strong third quarter to frustrate the No. 4 Blue Eagles in a defense-oriented Final Four showdown.

UP will face the winner of the other Final Four pairing between No. 2 La Salle and third-ranked National University in the best-of-three title series next week.

The Fighting Maroons split their head-to-head against the Green Archers in the eliminations, and have posted two double-digit victories over the Bulldogs this season.

“For me, it’s a team effort. Everybody was working hard and we prepared well for Ateneo. I’m really happy right now for the win and going to the Finals,” said reigning MVP Malick Diouf, who had a huge outing of 12 points, 16 rebounds, three steals, and three blocks.

The setback ended the Blue Eagles’ remarkable streak of six straight Finals appearances under coach Tab Baldwin, four of them have resulted to championships.

“Truly it has been a roller coaster season for us. The (7-7 elimination round) record indicates that,” said Baldwin. “But I really say I’m proud of my team because this was a season of battles, not just on the court. It was really a weird season. We battled to be better all the time to grow and develop. We battled a lot of injuries and illness.”

Earlier, University of Santo Tomas pulled off a 87-83 win over UP to forge an expected intense women’s championship duel with eight-peat seeking NU starting next week.

The teams combined for only 47 points in the first half until the Fighting Maroons got their rhythm in the third quarter behind Diouf and Aldous Torculas to seize a 42-37 lead.

Gerry Abadiano, Francis Lopez and Janjan Felicilda drained the much-needed baskets that allowed UP to stretch its lead to 53-44 with 3:51 left, and Ateneo never had a chance to save its season.

“Both teams we just fought. The score says it all. Both teams just came prepared especially in the defensive end. Both teams also struggled offensively, we got it going nung third quarter but more than that, they just fought hard and hindi sila bumitaw hanggang dulo,” said Fighting Maroons assistant coach Christian Luanzon.

Rookie Lopez also had a double-double of 12 points and 10 boards while Felicilda was the other UP player in double digits with 10 points that went along with five rebounds and three assists.

Chris Koon led the Blue Eagles with 10 points but was a non-factor in the payoff period where he was needed.

It was a difficult season for Ateneo, but Baldwin had all praises for his troops for their attitude despite all the adversities the team faced all-tournament long.

“These guys showed a lot of heart today. They stood toe-to-toe with I think is an outstanding basketball team. We gave ourselves a chance and probably I cannot ask much more of this team than what they accomplished this year,” said Baldwin.

The Tigresses advance to the Finals for the second time in the last three seasons, having faced the Lady Bulldogs in 2019.

The defeat ended the Fighting Maroons season, reaching the Final Four for the first time since 2008 and bagging third place.

“I would just like to commend my team who really worked hard for this Finals appearance. It’s a team effort, lahat tumrabaho from the start to the finish. I will not take away also the UP Fighting Maroons for giving us a good fight,” said UST coach Haydee Ong.

The Fighting Maroons dragged the Tigresses to a decider with a 88-80 overtime win last Wednesday.

“It’s very important kasi we know that UP is a resilient team, they will always come back after the first game namin na we had a big lead and kinain nga. I told the ladies that we have to protect the lead and we did up to the last quarter,” said Ong.

Kent Pastrana came through with 18 points and five rebounds while Brigette Santos scored 10 of her 14 points in the first period where UST exploded for 36 points.

Nigerian Favour Onoh, who grabbed a league record 30 rebounds last Wednesday, led the Fighting Maroons with 21 points and 14 boards while Kaye Pesquera chipped in 20 points.

The scores:

UP (57) – Diouf 12, Lopez 12, Felicilda 10, Abadiano 9, Torculas 7, Cansino 3, Cagulangan 2, Alarcon 2, Pablo 0, Torres 0, Alter 0, Belmonte 0, Fortea 0.
Ateneo (46) – Koon 10, Ballungay 8, Espinosa 7, Amos 6, Obasa 4, Brown 3, Chiu 3, Credo 3, Quitevis 2, Lazaro 0.
Quarterscores: 7-11, 22-25, 42-37, 57-46