No-quit UP Maroons rewarded with UAAP twice-to-beat bonus in big win vs Ateneo

The UP Fighting Maroons channeled their own version of “Never Say Die” after fighting back from a 16-point deficit in their second round encounter vs Ateneo en route to a 79-75 win in UAAP Season 88 on Wednesday.

UP started out flat offensively and scored just seven points in the first quarter of the match. But slowly but surely, the Fighting Maroons crept right back in the match.

The comeback reached its climax in the fourth quarter where skipper Gerry Abadiano amped up his offensive output – scoring 16 points in the final canto alone – to tow the defending champions past a desperate Ateneo squad.

Having trailed all three quarters, Abadiano’s explosion was the timely contribution they needed.

[RELATED: UAAP: UP rides late game surge to foil Ateneo, seals twice-to-beat edge]

After the match, Abadiano said that the team and himself continued to push despite Ateneo’s strong start.

“Lagi lang samin sinasabi ni Coach Gold [Monteverde] na 'wag na kami tumigil. Keep on pounding lang kami,” Abadiano said. 

“May mga challenges kami nung first half, 'di kami nagstart ng maayos and 'yun, lumamang sila ng malaki. Nasa isip lang namin sa team namin is tuloy lang kami sa paglalaro,”

Ateneo’s start saw them lead by as much as 16 points, 23-7 in the early goings of the second quarter. It was reminiscent of UP’s flat starts in their first two games of the season, both of which ended in losses.

This time around though, the Fighting Maroons were able to gather themselves in time.

Gerry Abadiano took it upon himself to pace UP past Ateneo. | Photo: RM Chua / One Sports

O Captain, My Captain!

On a personal note, Abadiano scored just two points heading into the fourth quarter, but he still had sky-high confidence to put the team on his shoulders.

But even as he nailed the lion’s share of UP’s offense when it mattered the most, the graduating skipper had nothing but good things to say about his teammates and how they continued to feed him.

“Nung time na kailangan ako ng team is yun, naging patient lang talaga ako nung una. 'Di ko naman talaga hinanap 'yung ganong bagay and dumating na siya nung fourth quarter. Sobrang blessed din and thankful lang din ako sa mga teammates ko sa paghahanap sakin nung fourth quarter,” he said.

Abadiano’s clutch makes included a personal 6-0 run that gave UP their first lead of the match with 6:15 ticks left in the ball game, 60-58.

Even as Ateneo was able to tie the match once more, it was all UP from that point on--thanks to Abadiano and timely second chance buckets on the side of the Diliman frontcourt led by Francis Nnoruka.

Abadiano finished with 18 points on 7-of-11 shooting, two rebounds, one steal, and one block in 23:28 minutes of action. Nnoruka added a double-double of 17 points and 15 boards.

Jacob Bayla also provided key energy with eight markers, five rebounds, three assists, and a block.

Meanwhile, Jared Bahay and Kymani Ladi paced Ateneo in the losing effort with 21 and 17 markers, respectively.

UP thus sealed a Top 2 spot with its 10-3 record while Ateneo fell to 5-7.

The Fighting Maroons wrap up their elimination round campaign when they face La Salle in a rematch of last year’s finals on Saturday, November 22, while Ateneo faces Adamson next on Sunday, November 23.

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Luisa Morales is a sports writer with a special interest in promoting women’s sports.

Her coverage highlights include the UAAP, PVL, Southeast Asian Games, and the FIBA World Cup. She also follows Alex Eala, the Philippine women’s national football team, and mixed martial arts.