Kai Ballungay and Chris Koon joined hands to lift defending champion Ateneo past rival De La Salle, 77-72, in the first round of the UAAP Season 86 men’s basketball tournament on Wednesday night, Oct. 4, at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

The Blue Eagles recovered just in time in the closing period to pick up their first win of the season in two games.

Ballungay delivered a double-double performance for Ateneo with 18 points and 14 rebounds on a 4-of-7 shooting from outside while Koon carried out a team-high 19 points.

However, it was rookie Mason Amos’ last-minute blast in the fourth period that truly powered the Blue Eagles with his 12 points, eight of which he scored to help the squad stay ahead.

Joseph Obasa, for his part, contributed a double-double showing of his own with 11 points and 15 rebounds.

The rival squads are coming off contrasting results in their respective opening day matches that saw Ateneo suffer a 77-64 defeat against National University Bulldogs.

Though both teams went back-and-forth for most of the match, La Salle managed to keep Ateneo behind until the third period, 54-47.

However, the Blue Eagles regained consciousness in the fourth period and blasted the Green Archers with a 10-0 run to snatch the driver's seat.

With 2:58 remaining in regulation, Kevin Quiambao put the match at a deadlock of 64-all with a three-pointer, but Amos fired eight straight points including two shots from downtown to keep the lead, 70-64.

But Quiambao refused to go down without a fight and unloaded another three-pointer to keep La Salle afloat, but Ateneo’s offensive production had completely picked up at this point.

Quiambao paced La Salle with another double-double outing of 17 points and 13 rebounds, while Evan Nelle, who was heavily marked by Ateneo came through with 15 points  in the losing effort.

The Green Archers absorbed a 1-1 slate.

In the earlier play, Adamson posted its first win of the season at the expense of University of Santo Tomas after eking out a 79-76 overtime victory.

The Soaring Falcons, still sans Jerom Lastimosa, joined the winning column after two matches, while the Growling Tigers suffered its 15 losses in a row dating from last season.

Cedrick Manzano led the way for Adamson with 16 points on a decent 7-of-11 shooting, while Matt Erolon added 11 points.

It was Migs Pangilinan and Nic Cabanero, who carried out the assault for UST with 18 and 17 points, respectively.

The Scores: Ateneo-La Salle 

Ateneo (77) – Koon 19, Ballungay 18, Amos 12, Obasa 11, Brown 8, Espinosa 5, Lazaro 2, Chiu 1, Quitevis 1, Credo 0, Bongo 0, Nieto 0, Gomez 0.

DLSU (72) – Quiambao 17, Nelle 15, Abadam 11, Nonoy 9, Austria 5, Cortez 4, Manuel 3, B. Phillips 3, M. Phillips 2, David 0, Escandor 0, Gollena 0.

Quarterscores: 25-23, 37-39, 47-54, 77-72

The Scores: Adamson-UST

AdU (79) – Manzano 16, Erolon 11, Sabandal 9, Magbuhos 7, Hanapi 7, Montebon 7, Calisay 6, Yerro 5, Barasi 3, Ojarikre 3, Barcelona 2, Canete 2, Ramos 1, Colonia 0.

UST (76) – Pangilinan 18, Cabañero 17, Crisostomo 10, Laure 8, Manaytay 7, Ventulan 6, Manalang 4, Gesalem 3, Lazarte 2, Duremdes 1, Llemit 0, Calum 0.

Quarterscores: 20-13, 40-36, 52-51, 68-68, 79-76