Ballungay, Amos lead late Ateneo rally to overcome La Salle

Kai Ballungay and Mason Amos led Ateneo de Manila University's late charge to overcome rivals De La Salle University, 77-72, in UAAP Season 86 on Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

After trailing 54-47 at the end of the third period, the Blue Eagles relied on the timely shots of Ballungay and Amos to reclaim the lead in the fourth quarter.

With the game tied at 64, Amos made back-to-back triples to give the Katipunan-based squad the lead at the 2:09 mark. Kevin Quiambao made a triple for the Green Archers, but Ballungay and Jared Brown gave the blue-and-white the lead anew, 74-67, with 1:06 to go, before eventually taking the win.

Ballungay posted a double-double of 18 points and 16 boards, while Amos had three triples, two of which were in the fourth period, en route to a 12-point outing. Joseph Obasa also registered a double-double of 11 points and 16 boards.

Quiambao led the Green Archers with 17 points and 14 rebounds, while Evan Nelle had 15 points.

Earlier, University of the Philippines opened the day with a 84-69 victory against University of the East, while National University took down Far Eastern University, 71-65.

Adamson University survived University of Santo Tomas in overtime, 79-76.

UP and NU share the lead at 2-0, while Ateneo, La Salle, UE, and Adamson are all at 1-1. UST and FEU are at the bottom of the standings with 0-2.

UAAP action will return on Saturday with another quadruple header at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. Ateneo and Adamson will open the games at 11 am, followed by NU vs. UP at 1 pm, UST and La Salle at 3 pm, and FEU vs. UE at 5 pm.

—JKC, GMA Integrated News