Kevin Quiambao leads La Salle to a convincing win over Ateneo in FilOil

De La Salle University rolled over Ateneo de Manila University and secured a dominant 98-61 victory in the main match of the FilOil EcoOil 17th ECJ Preseason Cup on Sunday in San Juan.

Reigning UAAP MVP Kevin Quiambao helped the Green Archers with 31 points, seven rebounds and four assists, bringing them one step closer to the quarterfinals.

“We keep reminding these guys not to look at the score and just keep playing,” Said La Salle head coach Topex Robinson.

“We know it’s always going to be a fight when we play against Ateneo.”

The Green Archers showed their high-caliber offense right from the start and started with a 10-0 run, which resulted in a 20-point lead (35-15) after the first quarter thanks to the performances of Quiambao, Jonnel Policarpio and EJ Abadam.

It was a dominant performance by Coach Robinson's boys, who led by as many as 48 points (84-36) after a three-pointer by Andrei Dungo with 3:32 minutes left in the third quarter.

Abadam added 12 points while Dungo added 11 for the Green Archers, who claimed their fourth straight win after a loss to open the preseason tournament. The tournament is co-presented by Bostik El Heneral and ABC Tile Adhesive and has Smart Sports, Strong Group Athletics and Hanes as major sponsors.

Joshua Lazaro had a double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds, while Jared Bahay added 12 points and five rebounds for the Blue Eagles, who played their third consecutive game in three days.

Meanwhile, the University of the Philippines closed the elimination round with a 68-46 victory over Adamson University, with Sean Alter scoring 12 points and Francis Lopez adding 11 points.

No player for the Falcons, who are now 2-4, reached double figures in scoring. Eli Ramos led the way with seven points and seven rebounds.

Meanwhile, National University survived and was able to fight another day after devastating Far Eastern University 91-59 with 32 points.

Jake Figueroa scored 11 points while Tebol Garcia and Kenshin Padrones each added 10 points to improve to 2-3, tied with the resting University of Santo Tomas.

Mo Konateh scored 16 points for the Tamaraws, who slipped to 3-2.

On the other hand, Colegio de San Juan de Letran secured a spot in the quarterfinals after surviving a late comeback from Mapua University, 96-92.

Nat Montecillo and Charles Dimaano led the Knights with 15 points each, while Rafael Go added 14 to lift their team to 6-2 in the showcase. They were also supported by Tela.com Athletics as the official supplier and Molten as the official game ball, as well as minor sponsors Reyes Barbecue, KFC, Brothers Burger, Wallem Philippines Shipping, Harbor Star Shipping Services, Akari, Jiang Nan Hotpot and KantiGo Sports.

Reigning NCAA MVP Clint Escamis led the Cardinals, now 4-4, with 31 points.

In the pregame, Reggz Gabat scored 27 points to lead San Sebastian College-Recoletos to a 94-86 victory over Emilio Aguinaldo College, keeping the team in the race for a playoff spot.

Raymart Escobido also scored 20 points for the Golden Stags, who improved to 2-5, while King Gurtiza scored 26 points in a losing game for the Generals, who slipped to 4-3.