UAAP: ADMU vs UP preview and live-scoring (round 2)

Game starts at 4pm. Page auto-refreshes every 30 seconds. First round meeting: The reigning four-peat champs Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles survived a feisty University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons squad that came close to pulling off the upset, before falling 76-70 last August 2 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. Things kicked off with both teams agreeing to go without a shot clock due to technical difficulties, but UP seemed less bothered, as hot shooting from big men Chris Ball and Raul Soyud gave them an early 19-17 lead. By the end of the first half, the Maroons were able to extend it to eight, 40-32. Ateneo however rallied after the break, and closed out to third with a 6-0 run to get the lead for good. A five-point bomb by reserve Oping Sumalinog got the Eagles' margin as high as 10, 74-64 with 2:27 left, before Nico Salva put the finishing touches on the win by hitting two from the foul line. The Maroons crashed the boards versus Ateneo, and were rewarded with 10 more offensive rebounds, but translated to just three more second chance points for them. By contrast, Ateneo went into attack mode in the second half and got 24 charities. They made 22, compared to UP's 9-of-13 clip. Key stats: UP's greatest asset is their deep bench, which averages 28.7 of their 63.7 output per game. The Maroons are also the top team in terms of steals (7.0 per game), and as a result, turnover points (17.6 per game). Ateneo meanwhile looks to dominate the paint. Of their 74.4 points per game (second in the UAAP), 38.3 comes from the shaded lane. But they're also good in defending the paint, topping the charts in blocks (6.4) and points in the paint allowed (29.1). UP needs to: Stop Ateneo from running and getting to the foul line. Conversely, if the Maroons can be the ones to force turnovers and get out on the break for easy points, they ought to do it, instead of being forced into a half court set and throwing up ill-advised triples. ADMU needs to: Hit outside shots should the UP defense concentrate on swarming Greg Slaughter once more. Nico Salva will be the key here, as he was in their first round match, as he can make defenses pay by hitting mid-range jumpers. The Eagles will also need to uncork their running game and hit enough long-jumpers to make the UP defense think twice about packing it in the paint. Projected UP starting five: Henry Asilum (14 points on 5/12 FG, 3/4 FT, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals vs UE), Mark Lopez, Chris Ball, Mike Silungan, Raul Soyud Projected ADMU starting five: Greg Slaughter (17 points on 5/10 FG, 7/11 FT, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 5 blocks), Juami Tiongson, Kiefer Ravena, Nico Salva, Oping Sumalinog - AMD, GMA News