Falcons shock Ateneo as birthday boy Magbuhos sinks winning trey
Date Posted: October 25, 2023 at 01:39 PM
It was a wish come true for birthday boy Vince Magbuhos as he drained an off-the-bank buzzer-beating trey from top of the key to lift the Soaring Falcons in overtime over Ateneo de Manila University, 74-71, in the UAAP 86 Men's Basketball Tournament, October 7, at the SMART Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.
It was the second overtime victory in as many conquests for the San Marcelino-based squad in their campaign for the present season. The final score was also the only time AdU led in the game.
Ateneo had a chance to grab the lead with at least 24 seconds left in the gameclock but Mason Amos failed to cash-in on his freebies.
Mathew Montebon could not make an attempt on the next possession after having the ball deflected out of bounds with just a little more than three seconds left in OT, leading to an Adamson timeout.
The ensuing offensive play for the Falcons, though, resulted in a broken play with Magbuhos receiving the ball at the top of the three-point arc, and launching a tightly contested attempt for the win.
"I just want to thank Lord [dahil n’ung] nagpray ako kaninang umaga, hiniling ko sa kanya kung meron man siyang ibibigay na gift ay yung panalo na lang," Magbuhos shared during the post-game press conference.
Adamson was down by as much as 19 in the first half, but the Nash Racela-mentored team slowly chipped in the deficit, lowering it to 10 in the fourth frame.
Montebon and Eli Ramos then scored the last seven points of the fourth to lead their team to overtime with the score locked at 69.
With the win, AdU raised their record to an even 2-2, and snapped their eight-game losing streak against Ateneo, which spans since 2018.
Ramos topscored for the Falcons against his former team with 12 points, while Cedrick Manzano registed another double-doubleperformance with 12 markers, 12 boards and two blocked shots. Magbuhos, meanwhile, had 11 points and was online from deep with a 3-of-5 clip.
Adamson will try to score another victory, this time against De La Salle University on October 11 at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
The Scores:
Adamson 74 - Ramos 12, Manzano 12, Magbuhos 11, Hanapi 9, Yerro 8, Calisay 5, Montebon 5, Colonia 4, Anabo 3, Erolon 3, Sabandal 2, Ojarikre 0, Barasi 0.
Ateneo 71 - Amos 12, Ballungay 10, Koon 9, Nieto 9, Obasa 8, Brown 6, Gomez 6, Bongon 6, Espinosa 2, Credo 2, Quitevis 1, Chiu 0, Lazaro 0.
Quarterscores: 9-25, 29-44, 48-53, 69-69, 74-71.
