Ateneo escapes FEU in OT, sets up finals duel with La Salle

The Blue Eagles are back in the finals. GMA News

Isaac Go returned from a bloodied nose to hit the go-ahead basket in the final seconds of overtime to lift Ateneo past Far Eastern University, 69-68, on Wednesday at SMART-Araneta Coliseum in the UAAP Season 79 semifinals.

With the victory, the Blue Eagles will return to the finals in a duel against archrival La Salle. The Green Archers finished the regular season with a 13-1 record, their only blemish coming at the hands of the Blue Eagles.

Ateneo will be back in the title series for the first time since 2012, when the squad won the last of five straight titles under coach Norman Black. The Blue Eagles will hope to do it in their first year under coach Tab Baldwin.

But the win did not come without a scare, as the Tamaraws had a shot to hit the game-winner in the final second. But Ron Dennison's attempt came a fraction of a second too late, letting Ateneo escape with the victory.

Ateneo star Thirdy Ravena had a chance to end the game for the Eagles in the dying seconds in the fourth, but his layup down the baseline failed to find the bottom of the net.

In overtime, Go suffered a bloodied nose due to an inadvertent elbow from FEU center Prince Orizu, forcing coach Tab Baldwin to send in Chi Ikeh in his place. But after managing the bleeding, the Blue Eagles sent Go in anew, and he delivered by scoring Ateneo's lone field goal in the extra five minutes. --JST, GMA News