The Blue Eagles were dethroned as PCCL champions Thursday afternoon at the FilOil/Flying V Arena. They lost to the Stags, 67-73.

San Sebastian, led by eventual Mythical 5 members Calvin Abueva and Ian Sangalang, stifled Ateneo’s offense right from the start. Ateneo seemed to be in a disarray at the start of the game with some of the players coming in late because of the traffic.

It was a slow start for the Eagles with their first basket coming in at the 7:30 mark.  Emman Monfort contributed 8 straight points that gave Ateneo a 4-point lead, 16-12. But Sangalang had a stellar first quarter for the Stags and saw them on top after the opening quarter, 16-17.

Ateneo could not seem to find their rhythm in the game and San Sebastian exploited this. They were able to extend their lead by 7 at the end of the first half, 29-36.

In the third quarter, point guard Juami Tiongson exploded for 11 points. But even a couple of treys from the Eagles could not overcome the lead erected by the Stags. The Eagles were still down at the end of the third canto, 49-57.

There were a number of times that Ateneo was close to tying the game but San Sebastian would have an answer for every Ateneo basket made. Most of the Ateneo scoring staples, like Kiefer Ravena and Nico Salva, had off-games with their shots not going in.

The Stags were able to finish what they came in to do – stop the Blue Eagles. With the Eagle’s defense focused on Abueva and Sangalang, several other Stags were able to sink baskets and end Ateneo’s winning run for the year.

Salva and Slaughter were two members of the Blue Eagle squad who are members of the Mythical 5.

This game also marked the last game of Kirk Long, Emman Monfort, and Bacon Austria as Blue Eagles.

It wasn’t an easy win for the Blue Eagles as the Stags, led by Calvin Abueva, forced the Eagles to make 16 turnovers and only 35% field goal shooting in the first half.

Game 1 was also a very physical game as technical fouls were given to both teams. A double technical foul was called on Ateneo’s JP Erram and San Sebastian’s Abueva in the middle of the second quarter. A few minutes after, Golden Stags Head Coach Topex Robinson was also called for a technical foul with Kiefer Ravena splitting the technical freethrows to bring Ateneo’s lead up to 2, 23-21, with less than 3 minutes left in the first half. A three point shot by Tonino Gonzaga gave the Blue Eagles a 3-point lead, 26-23, at the halftime mark.

In the third quarter, Erram was called for another technical foul that saw him on the bench for the rest of the game. A nifty side-step layup by Gonzaga gave the Eagles a much needed shot of energy that allowed Ateneo to stay on top by 7, 46-39, at the end of the third quarter.

The fourth quarter saw the Stags cut on the Ateneo lead as they upped their defense on the Eagles. Ravena gave Ateneo their first field goal of the quarter, that saw Ateneo in the lead by 2 points, 52-50, with less than 3 minutes left in the game.

Ateneo switched to a zone defense in the last couple of minutes, which confused the Stags and forced them to turn the ball over much to the chagrin of the San Sebastian team and fans. Free throws from Kirk Long & Oping Sumalinog sealed the game for the Blue Eagles who are aiming for a three-peat in the PCCL.

Game 2 is scheduled for Thursday, December 15, at 3:30 pm at the FilOil/Flying V Arena in San Juan.

The first quarter saw Ateneo have a slight edge over FEU with Rookie of the Year Kiefer Ravena, Nico Salva, and Greg Slaughter leading the charge. Ramos carried his team offensively, scoring all of FEU’s first 7 points in the game. With 30 seconds left in the first ten minutes of action, a putback by Salva off a miss by Justin Chua broke the deadlock putting Ateneo up by 2. With the clock winding down for the Tams, Tonino Gonzaga stripped last season’s MVP RR Garcia of the ball that led to a fastbreak play for the Blue Eagles, dishing off to a trailing Chua for the basket plus a foul with just 5 ticks left. The former highschool standout from Chang Kai Shek sank the bonus freethrow to complete the and 1 play to up the Ateneo lead to 5 at the close of the first quarter, 23-18.

Pointguard Juami Tiongson began the second quarter waxing hot with a three-pointer followed by a running jumper to extend the Ateneo lead to 10, 28-18. A basket by Mark Bringas over Slaughter with 4 minutes remaining before halftime put the Tamaraws within 6, 30-24, but Ravena would halt the impending FEU run with a three-pointer to up the lead back to 7. Slaughter would however collect his second personal foul giving John Foronda a three-point play with a little less than three minutes to go, trimming Ateneo’s advantage to just 4, and forcing Coach Norman Black to save his big man from further foul trouble by sitting him out the rest of the first half. At the 2:24 mark, a bad pass Salva to Ravena was broken up by Chris Exciminiano that led to a strong layup on the fastbreak cutting the lead to just 2 points. A completed three-point play by Garcia and 2 made freethrows by Terence Romeo put FEU ahead by 3 but another basket from Tiongson from the perimeter just before the break cut the deficit to 1 as both teams headed to the dugout.

Unselfish basketball is what characterized Ateneo’s third quarter, and basically their whole season. It was a nip-tuck battle in the early goings until the Blue Eagles’ passing game began to hum. At the 7:40 mark, roles were reversed as 7-foot center Slaughter dished off to Ravena who found an open Salva with an assist all alone in the middle to put Ateneo ahead by 1, 39-38. Moments later, Ravena would hit a stab from underneath to extend the lead to 3. Another excellent passing play happened with 6:03 remaining as Ravena and Monfort attacked on transition finding an open Kirk Long for the bucket and the 5 point advantage. A little under 4 minutes left, a drop pass by Salva to a waiting Gonzaga got them another bucket, drawing the foul in the process. Gonzaga made the extra charity to balloon the Ateneo lead to 11. The former Ateneo Blue Eaglet, who has built a growing cult following this season admiring the energetic forward’s intensity and passion, also went to work on defense with 1 steal as well as a block at the 1:00 mark that led to a three-pointer for him on the other end of the floor to extend Ateneo’s lead to 14. The third quarter ended with Ateneo on top, 57-45.

Ateneo’s trio of Ravena, Monfort, and Slaughter led the fourth quarter charge with the three combining for 18 of their team’s 25 points. Ramos and Garcia tried to carry their team on their shoulders but their collective 15 points between them found little support from their teammates on offense and trying to suppress Ateneo defensively. At the 8:39 mark, Ravena hit a jumper off a spin and a step back under duress for the 61-47 lead. A long three-pointer from Monfort with 6:03 made it a 68-53 game. everything else was all but academic after that with Coach Norman Black sending his graduating players Monfort, Long, and Bacon Austria off in style by giving each an opportunity to wave goodbye to the Blue and White faithful, subbing them one by one. The buzzer sounded with Ateneo on top by 13, the crowd rushing the court, and the fourth championship secured.

Kiefer Ravena once again showed why he deserved this year’s best newbie award by leading his team with 18 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and a steal. Nico Salva, coming off a “perfect game” in Game 1, continued his fine performance scoring 15 points along with 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and a steal – earning him the Finals MVP Award. Mythical Team member Greg Slaughter and Juami Tiongson both had 11 points each. FEU’s Aldrech Ramos and RR Garcia scored 20 and 16 respectively with Ramos hauling down 13 boards. Russel Escoto also had 11 rebounds to help FEU’s cause.

Asked about the team’s fourth straight championship after the game, Coach Norman said, “I feel great. When I first joined Ateneo, I actually inherited the players that were there. The 2008 recruiting class was really the big recruiting class for us. Of course Chris Tiu was already there, Yuri Escueta, Mike Baldos, and those guys but the class of Ryan Buenafe, Nico Salva, Justin Chua, Frank Golla and Vince Burke really got us over the hump. (We) brought in a lot of big guys that year and combining them with the nucleus that we already had… led us on this run that we have right now. These guys really want to win basketball games. They want to be known as the best college program in the country. We just want to be known as the best college team in the country. That’s basically it.”

Asked about how he feels about joining the elite rank of coaches who have won four straight championships that include Baby Dalupan, Aric Del Rosario, and Franz Pumaren, the former PBA Grand Slam coach lightheartedly replies, “I’m very confident but I’m also very humble. My wife says I’m very yabang but most everybody else thinks I’m a humble person. It’s a good feeling being in the same group as those guys not only to win one championship but to put up a string of championships where you can convince the same guys to continue to give their best every game, every year.”

The Bonfire celebration for the champs, as well as the other champion teams of Season 74, is set for next Saturday, October 8 at the Grade School area between the Blue Eagle Gym and Henry Lee Irwin Theater.

SCORES:
ATENEO (82)- Ravena 18, Salva 15, Slaughter 11, Tiongson 11, Monfort 9, Gonzaga 6, Long 5, Chua 5, Erram 2, Pessumal 0, Sumalinog 0, Golla 0, Austria 0

FEU (69)- Ramos 20, Garcia 16, Tolomia 7, Romeo 7, Escoto 4, Bringas 4, Exciminiano 4, Foronda 3, Cruz 2, Nouondu 2, Pogoy 0, Mendoza 0, Knuttel 0

Written by: Mikko Abello

The Ateneo de Manila Blue Eagles drew first blood in their Season 74 finals series, taking Game 1 via an 82-64 win over the Far Eastern University Tamaraws. The Blue Eagles’ running game was in full effect, outscoring FEU on fastbreak points 18-2. Their interior offense also dominated that of FEU’s, 50-22, as they continued to attack the Tams inside the paint. Ateneo is now just a win away from a historic fourth consecutive championship in the UAAP, something that has never been accomplished by the university since its inclusion in the league.

Ateneo came charging out the gates in the opening quarter, going on a quick 6-0 run behind a reverse layup by Greg Slaughter and back-to-back baskets by Nico Salva which forced Coach Bert Flores to call a timeout at the 7:51 mark. The Tamaraws emerged from the huddle regrouped and well-adjusted with last year’s MVP RR Garcia hit a jumper for FEU’s first basket of the game. A couple of floaters from Garcia and Terrence Romeo on Ateneo’s big men tied the game at 6-all with 6:25 left until another Romeo basket gave FEU its first taste of the lead with 4:42 remaining at 10-8. Romeo’s 10 points in the first ten minutes of action was a big reason why FEU was ahead at the end of the first quarter, 19-14.

FEU began the early goings of the second quarter on the momentum they had built earlier. A fastbreak play by Chris Exciminiano coming off an Ateneo turnover blew up the Tamaraws’ lead to 10 at the 8:00 juncture. Salva and Kiefer Ravena would then up the ante for Ateneo combining for 12 of Ateneo’s 19 points in the quarter. A three-pointer by Salva with 3:45 cut the FEU lead to 6, 28-22. Moments later, a foul by Aldrech Ramos on Emman Monfort during a rebound play sent the speedy guard to the line that further trimmed the differential to just 4 points. Kirk Long would then score on a layup followed by a Ravena basket from a Monfort outlet pass that evened up the score at 28-all with 2:40 to go before halftime. It was a nip-tuck affair until the break with both teams exchanging baskets. The score was tied at 33 when Bacon Austria denied Romeo with a huge block right as the buzzer sounded to end the first half.

Known to be a lethal team in the second half, Ateneo once again proved its worth by solidly outscoring the Tams, 49-31. At the 8:42 mark of the third quarter, Slaughter had a dunk off the fastbreak that put Ateneo ahead by 3. Another slam came from Salva with 2:34 left that ballooned the Blue Eagles’ lead to 53-45. An undergoal stab by Poy Erram with 1:38 remaining kept Ateneo up, 55-47. With just 5 ticks left on the clock, a Kiefer Ravena pull up in the paint upped Ateneo’s advantage to 60-49 heading into the final quarter.

FEU showed sings of life in the fourth quarter that kept Ateneo on their toes. Escoto climbed the ladder to finish a big second-chance slam just over a minute into the period to cut the Ateneo advantage to 9 but Justin Chua answered back right away off an assist from Tonino Gonzaga for the 62-51 lead. Emman Monfort hit a booming triple with 6:07 remaining for the 65-53 headway. Midway into the quarter, Salva beat his defender, Roger Pogoy, to the basket for the strong finish followed shortly by an alleyoop play from Long to Slaughter for the 69-53 lead. Another Slaughter slam happened with 3:39 left originating from an entry pass from Ravena to the big man in the middle for the easy stuff and the 73-55 advantage. Romeo sank a three with 2:50 to go scraping a bit of the Ateneo lead, 75-58, to an already deflated FEU crowd while the rest of the coliseum clad in blue was rocking. Ravena hit a three over 2 defenders with 1:50 left for the 20 point lead, 78-58. FEU would answer back with a couple of baskets from beyond the arc coming from Escoto and Ramos but it was all too late for the Tams.

Nico Salva led all scorers with 24 points, shooting impeccably on a 100% clip, going 8/8 each from both the field and the freethrow line today. Kiefer Ravena knocked in 17 points with 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals to boot. Greg Slaughter and Emman Monfort had 12 and 11 respectively. Terrence Romeo took on the scoring cudgels for FEU scoring 23 points but found very little support from his teammates. The only other Tamaraw who had a double-digit output offensively was Escoto with 12 points. The Tamaraws also shot poorly from the stripe going just 33.3% today.

Game 2 is set on Tuesday, September 27, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. Individual awards will also be given on Tuesday before the start of the game.

Written by Mikko Abello

STATS OF THE GAME

BOX SCORES

GALLERY

UST bared their fangs early on racing to a 4-0 lead, including a Jeric Fortuna 3-pointer, until Slaughter scored on a putback to put Ateneo on the jumbotron. Kirk Long’s trey at the 5:20 mark tied the game at 8-all. Slaughter bit on a pretty upfake by Karim Abdul with 4 minutes left in the quarter that led to a UST bucket for a 12-8 lead but moments later, another Slaughter basket off a miss by point guard Juami Tiongson evened out the score at 14-all. With 2:03 remaining in the opening canto and just a second left on UST’s shotclock, Abdul converted on a quick release off a baseline inbound to put them ahead by 2 but Tiongson answered back on the other end for another deadlock. A Justin Chua basket with about 40 seconds left kept the score tied at 18-all which kept until the buzzer sounded.

Tiongson began the second quarter with a three-point play off a running jumper that gave Ateneo the momentary edge but UST’s Robin Tan, a former point guard for Ateneo’s Glory B Team, tied the game once again with a booming triple. Tonino Gonzaga answered back with a three of his own followed by another basket from the electrifying sixth man inside the shaded area originating from a Justin Chua block on Sheak Sheriff. Ateneo’s bench flourished in the early part of the quarter and the fullcourt press they employed on defense frustrated UST, slowing down the ball and forcing a spate of errors. Split freethrows by Ravena at the 3:47 mark extended the Ateneo advantage to 30-23. Underrated UST forward Chris Camus hit a triple with 3:24 to go to cut the lead to but 3 but Salva made the hard-nosed Tiger pay on defense by blowing by the bruiser for an easy layup on the other end of the floor. The last two minutes before halftime was a Nico Salva show with the veteran forward from San Beda high school making his teammates look good. A couple of assists from Salva gave way to baskets by Slaughter and Ravena. A jumper by the former Red Cub ballooned Ateneo’s lead to 10 with less than a minute to go before the break but Fortuna would answer back before the half ended to make it 38-30 with Ateneo in front.

The Blue Eagles kept their intensity going in the third quarter, again outscoring the Tigers 14-10. Kiefer Ravena converted two from the line barely 2 minutes into the second half that upped the Ateneo lead to 12. At the 7:45 mark, UST rookie Kevin Ferrer could do little to stop a Kirk Long shovel pass to a trailing Nico Salva for the 44-30 advantage. Two freethrows from Slaughter with 5:42 on the clock further kept the Tigers at bay at 48-33. With 3:21 left in the third, a Ravena steal led to an alley-oop slam by Slaughter from Nico Salva that got everybody in the coliseum off their seats. Ateneo led by 12, 52-40, heading into the last ten minutes of play.

With their season on the line and their hopes of forcing a Game 2 in their semifinal matchup with the reigning three-peat champs slowly slipping away, the Tigers headed into the 4th quarter playing probably their best basketball only a little too late. UST went on a 6-2 run to begin their last stand, trimming the lead to a single digit, 54-46. A block party on both ends of the floor involving big men Justin Chua and Chris Camus transpired before the latter unloaded another 3-pointer with 7 minutes and change left to put UST within 5 points but Chua would answer back with a basket of his own to create space for Ateneo at 56-49 with 6:45 remaining in the game. Just moments later, Camus would leave the game bleeding after he got inadvertently hit in the face with a Greg Slaughter elbow on defense but would return all taped up with 5:30 left to rally his teammates’ spirits. Ravena hit a pullup jumper and drew the foul on Jeric Teng to give Ateneo back the 10 point lead they had earlier enjoyed but former high school rival Kevin Ferrer converted on a putback of his own miss at the halfway mark to make it a 61-53 game. The two rookies would continue to go head-to-head but this year’s Rookie of the Year got the better of his UST counterpart, baiting Ferrer to commit an offensive foul which sent coach Pido Jarencio ballistic in the sidelines. Another Slaughter dunk got the blue and white faithful into a frenzy at the 4:13 mark coming from an assist by Kirk Long to pace the game at a 10-point cushion.

The Tigers however were nowhere near done. Jeric Fortuna sank a three with 2:12 left to make it a 5 point game at 65-60. Ravena and Ferrer continued to battle it out with Kiefer again getting the better of his former RP Youth teammate drawing a foul in the act of shooting a 3-pointer which had Ferrer fouling out of the ballgame with 1:48 remaining. Ravena made 1 of his 3 charities stretching Ateneo’s lead to 66-60. Chris Camus, bloodied and all, then hit a big shot from beyond the arc to cut the lead to just 3 with 1:26 left. UST had a couple of missed opportunities to trim the lead or even tie but turnovers by Fortuna cost the Tigers. with 13.4 left, Justin Chua grabbed a huge offensive rebound off a Ravena miss and drew a foul on Abdul. Chua split his freethrows making it a 67-63 lead for the Blue Eagles. Teng then hit a 3-pointer that kept the Tigers alive with just 5 ticks left. A quick foul on Salva sent him to the line with 2.7 remaining on the clock. After Salva converted on both attempts, Pido Jarencio called a timeout to draw up one final play to force the game into overtime. Jeric Fortuna was the designated shooter but the shifty guard missed a three at the buzzer.

Greg Slaughter led all scorers today with 17 points, 8 rebounds, 3 blocked shots, and a steal before leaving the game late in the 4th quarter due to cramps. Ravena had 13 points along with 2 rebounds, 2 assists, and a steal. Nico Salva contributed 12 points, 4 boards, and 4 dishes. UST’s Karim Abdul topscored for the Tigers with 16 points, 16 rebounds, 2 steals, and 2 blocks.

Ateneo awaits the victor of the other Final 4 match up between FEU and Adamson but the first game of the Finals is already scheduled for September 24, Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Written by Mikko Abello

In the first quarter, Adamson sank the first basket but this was immediately answered by Ateneo’s team captain Sarah Mercado, who was the only one who created baskets for the team in the first five minutes. Ateneo struggled to move the ball. Luckily before the end of the first quarter Valerie Chua and Sara Bo-ot were able to pitch in cutting Adamson’s lead 9-11.

The Lady Eagles were silent for the most part of the second quarter. Their outside shots were not working and they have been forced several turnovers. To make things worse, Adamson’s defense disabled Ateneo from penetrating through the basket. While on the other side, Adamson had an aggressive offense with their outside baskets making it way successfully into the hoop. Ateneo was scoreless until a free throw basket from Denise Tiu at 3:25 that sparked Ateneo’s scoring with a lay-up from Bo-ot and Chua in the last seconds before halftime. Ateneo ended the second quarter, 14-23.

The Lady Eagles were pumped up coming from the dugout. Tiu opened the quarter with back-to-back baskets and Mercado completed a three-point play after drawing a foul. This was immediately followed by another conversion from Tiu, that made Adamson call timeout to stop Ateneo from a comeback. The Lady Falcons were able to do exactly this. Ateneo’s 13 points didn’t match to Adamson’s 17 points in this quarter.

In the final quarter, the Lady Eagles didn’t lose hope and though fatigue was all over their faces they continued to battle to somehow end the season with a win. Danica Jose ended her scoring drought with a quick lay-up that was followed by a basket from Jennifer Dimaano. Mercado played more aggressively and was able to come up with a converted steal. Ateneo’s 6-0 run forced Adamson to call a timeout to make sure Ateneo doesn’t end up stealing this game from them. In the dying minutes of the game, Bo-ot converted back-to-back baskets sending the Lady Eagles closer but still short to grab this game from the Lady Falcons.

The Lady Eagles ended Season 64 with a 7-7 win-loss record.

Ateneo: Bo-ot 14, Mercado 10, Tiu 7, Chua 4, Dimaano 3, Jose 2, Ong 2, Aseron 0, Morales 0, Estrada 0
Adamson: Ortega 12, Buendia 10, Bernardo 6, Balasta 6, Taller 5, Taroja 2, Figueras 2, De Leon 2, Avila 2, Versoza 2, Gadia 0.

Adamson University denied Ateneo an outright berth in the finals by convincingly defeating the three-time defending champions, 62-46. Everyone knew history would be made as league-leading Ateneo clashed with second-seeded Adamson University in their second round encounter at the Smart Araneta Coliseum today. The odds were stacked against the Soaring Falcons who lost to the Blue Eagles by 4 in their first meeting but Coach Leo Austria’s wards were determined not to give the Loyola-based squad the sweep everyone was expecting, ending Ateneo’s streak this season at 13 wins. The victory also ended Adamson’s 14-year drought at the talons of the Blue Eagles. The last time Adamson won over Ateneo was in September 1997. More significantly, it prevented Ateneo from gaining a thrice-to-beat advantage in the championship series.

Adamson’s 1-2 punch of Lester Alvarez and Alex Nuyles led Adamson’s charge right from the get-go with a booming triple and a strong drive that put the Falcons ahead 5-0 early on. Alvarez alone had 6 points in the first quarter but baskets by Kirk Long, Kiefer Ravena, and a spectacular dunk by Greg Slaughter kept the Adamson lead within reach. The first ten minutes of action ended with Adamson ahead 14-8.

Ateneo played their best basketball in the second quarter, outscoring Adamson 16-13. Ravena led the way with 5 points while Tonino Gonzaga, who has been seeing more and more minutes lately, had 4 points in the quarter. At the 7:41 mark, Ravena was able to break away for a strong finish that put Ateneo within 3, 16-13. Less than a minute later, a Tonino Gonzaga layup cut the Adamson lead to just a solitary point. Adamson relied on scrappy plays such as an Eric Camson putback off an Alvarez miss to extend the lead further. With a little over 4 minutes left before halftime, Adamson’s Allen Etrone hit a three that put the Falcons in front, 23-17. Nico Salva answered with a three-pointer of his own, which was Ateneo’s lone made shot from beyond the arc on 10% shooting from outside. Another definitive Adamson play happened with about a minute left in the quarter when a Lionel Manyara block on Kirk Long led to a Nuyles layup on the other side to stretch the margin to 5, 27-22. Long converted 2 freethrows with 6.2 seconds left allowing Ateneo to cut the lead to 3, 27-24, as both teams headed to the break.

Adamson emerged from the dugout more fired up than its antagonist, as the Falcons limited Ateneo to just 7 points in the third quarter. Alex Nuyles erupted for 13 points of Adamson’s total 23 in the period. A Nuyles three over Bacon Austria gave Adamson a 50-31 cushion heading into the final 10 minutes of play.Adamson kept the intensity going in the fourth quarter with big plays including a followup slam by Manyara over 7-foot Greg Slaughter that upped the Adamson advantage to 20. Ateneo would then go on a 7-2 run sparked by big baskets from Ravena and Monfort but Falcon Janus Lozada ended it with a spin from the baseline with 4:30 left that gave Adamson a 56-39 lead. A sweet jumper from the baseline coming off a Nuyles dish proved to be the dagger in the heart of the Ateneo faithful who came in droves hoping to witness a sweep today.

Nuyles led all scorers with 21 points while Alvarez had 14. Eric Camson chipped in 6 points and hauled down 9 rebounds for the Falcons. Greg slaughter was the only Ateneo player to score in double-digits with 10 points and a way below average 5 rebounds. Kiefer Ravena and Kirk Long both had 9 points in the game with the latter leading his team in rebounding with 7 boards. Tonino Gonzaga who was been seeing more and more minutes as of late contributed 7 points to the Blue Eagles’ cause. Ateneo’s bench only came up with 9 points today. Adamson also made Ateneo pay with 22 turnover points and 10 coming off offensive rebounds. Another statistic worth mentioning was the Falcons’ impeccable shooting from the stripe today. They were spotless from the line on 19/19 freethrow shooting.

After the game, Coach Leo Austria called today’s victory “the sweetest Adamson win”. “Gusto kong maiyak sa saya”, said Austria, “When you play Ateneo, parang isang paa mo nasa hukay na”, referring to how tough their last assignment in the elimination round was. “We arranged the Final 4. No sweep”

The Final Four games begin on Thursday where Ateneo will face the number 4 team while Adamson matches up against the third-seed depending on the results of tomorrow’s games.

Written by Mikko Abello

And win they did.

The Ateneo de Manila Lady Eagles banked on a dominant 34-point first half to expiate for a horrendous 19-point second half as they survived a pesky and relentless fourth quarter surge by the University of the Philippines Lady Maroons to repulse their Katipunan neighbors, 53-43, at the Blue Eagle Gym, last Sunday.

Sarah Mercado pumped in 16 points, hauled down nine boards and had two steals to spearhead the Loyola-based squad in keeping their hopes of advancing to the Final Four alive with a 7-6 slate.

Mercado welcomed the game with the first of the three treys the Lady Eagles drained in the opening canto to give the Lady Eagles their first lead – a lead they never relinquished – at 3-0. After Lady Maroon Kryzza Casino connected on a lay-up to answer back-to-back three pointers from Samantha Ong and Mercado, the Lady Eagles went on a 5-0 run capped by a completed and-one play by Mercado who was fouled as she slashed to the hoop, 16-6. The quarter ended with Mercado outscoring the Lady Maroons, 9-7, at 16-7.

The Lady Eagles sustained their piercing start in the second salvo as their stifling defense forced the Lady Maroons to four consecutive turnovers in their first four possessions. Super rookie Danica Jose instigated a 7-0 run, pounding the ball inside on three consecutive possessions, scoring on two occasions and assisting on a corner three by Sara Bo-ot, 32-14. Karen Salapong of UP responded with a trey of her own before Mercado swished a sensational jumper inside the arc with defense all over her face to end the half at 34-17.

Then their problems came.

The Lady Maroons came out with all guns ablaze and unleashed a 12-2 blitz that saw the lead of the turnover-mired Lady Eagles evaporate at 36-29. Lady Eagle Samantha Ong waxed hot and was quick to extinguish the momentum built by UP by pouring in five points on a 7-0 Lady Eagle run, 43-29. The two teams entered regulation at 43-30.

In regulation, the Lady Eagles staggered and almost collapsed, good thing they had Lady Luck on their side, and a cold-blooded Samantha Ong who scored 10 of her 13 points in the second half.

After the Lady Eagles committed one of their four shot-clock violations in the quarter at the 4:46 mark, the Lady Maroons orchestrated a dramatic 9-0 run in less than two minutes that caught the Ateneo Five flabbergasted and gasping for answers which prompted a time-out with 2:53 left to play.

The Lady Eagles committed back-to-back shot-clock violations after the time-out. On both occassions, they scrambled on offense and went to Jose as the clock was about to expire; on both occassions, Jose’s slow footwork was exposed and she failed to release a shot. Lady Maroon Antonia Wong split her charities to trim the deficit to five, 48-43 with 50 ticks remaining on the clock. After several missed shot by the Lady Maroons, Ong put an end to their comeback hopes. The Lady Eagle hotshot drained a three-pointer with 20 ticks left, 51-43, and snatched the ball off an inbounds play and swished both her charities after getting fouled with 16.6 ticks left to seal the deal at 53-43.

The Lady Maroons, outscoring the Lady Eagles 26-19 in the second half, fell short of completing a comeback as they failed to convert their free-throws (they shot just 6/12 in the fourth) and were not able to capitalize on the seven fourth quarter turnovers of the Lady Eagles. The two teams combined for a total of 48 turnovers, 26 by Ateneo, 22 by UP.

Ateneo and UP both shot dreadfully on the field, 35.3% (18/51) and 24.1% (14/58), respectively.

Ateneo 53 – Mercado S. 16, Ong 13, Jose 6, Bo-ot, 6, Dimaano 4, Chua 4, Aseron 2, Estrada 2, Castro 0, Javier 0, Tantoco 0, Tiu 0, Torre 0.

UP 43 – Mercado B. 10, Paz 6, Salapong 6, Casiñ0 4, Luna 4, Wong 4, Daez 3, Binamira 2, Furagganan 2, Topacio 2, Hufanda 0, Pioquinto 0.

NOTE: The Adamson Lady Falcons won in their match against NU for a 9-4 slate in the afternoon, thereby eliminating the Lady Eagles. Had the Lady Falcons lost the game, they’d be at 8-5 with Ateneo having a chance to tie them at 8-6 if they were to lose against the Lady Eagles in their final game of the second round this coming Sunday.

Written by: Rey Laxa

The Ateneo de Manila Blue Eagles blew out the National University Bulldogs, 61-39, to notch their 13th win of the season. This makes them one game shy of a sweep and an outright finals spot. National University’s loss dampened their hopes for a Final Four spot as they only have one game remaining. The Blue Eagles built their lead slowly behind double-digit performances of Greg Slaughter, Kiefer Ravena, Nico Salva and Team Captain Kirk Long. Defense ultimately won the game for them as they held the Bulldogs to only 39 points for the entire game.

The first quarter was a close one as the Bulldogs were able to defend the paint which forced the Blue Eagles to shoot jumpers. Ravena started things off for the Blue Eagles with a jumper, followed by a 3 by Long at the 7:01 mark to give Ateneo a 5-2 lead. The Blue Eagles were scoreless for almost 3 minutes until Ravena hit a 3 to tie the game at 8. After a steal by Emman Monfort, both teams scrambled for the ball but Ravena was able to lay it in at the 2:26 mark to tie the game again at 10. Frank Golla hit the final shot of the quarter with 50 seconds left to regain the lead, 12-11.

Coach Norman Black started the second quarter with Tonino Gonzaga, Bacon Austria, Chris Sumalinog, Golla and Ravena. The Bulldogs quickly regained the lead after missed shots by the Blue Eagles. This prompted Coach Black to bring the starters back in at the 6:39 mark. Long made consecutive layups to close in on the Bulldogs with 4:49 left in the first half. After a scoreless first quarter, Salva was able to connect to give Ateneo the lead, 20-19. Gonzaga added another layup to bring the lead up to 3 with 2:50 left. Slaughter had his first two points of the game at the 1:15 mark. Ateneo still led, 24-19. But it was a stellar pass by Slaughter to Salva with 51 seconds left to end the quarter which had the Ateneo fans roaring. The first half ended with Ateneo pulling away, 26-19.

The Ateneo Blue Eagles amped up their defense in the 3rd canto and was able to hold the NU Bulldogs to 8 points the entire quarter. Salva had an early bucket for the Blue Eagles as the lead increased to 9. After a 2-point performance in the 1st half, Slaughter, with the help of Monfort, had back-to-back buckets both with bonuses that added to Ateneo’s lead. The Blue Eagles’ tight defense left the Bulldogs scoreless until a free throw from Emmanuel Mbe at the 4:04 mark. The lead was still 12, 39-27. Monfort went coast to coast for a layup with 1:35 left in the 3rd to bring the score to 43-27. After a Gonzaga jumper with 17 seconds left in the quarter, the Blue Eagles were able to regain possession. Ravena ended the quarter with a buzzer beater 3 as the lead of Ateneo ballooned to 21, 48-27.

Second stringers started the final quarter together with Ravena for the Blue Eagles. Bobby Ray Parks hit a quick basket which led to an immediate substitution, bringing back starters Salva, Slaughter and Long. The starters did their job as they maintained the lead at 21. A Nico Salva jam at the 7:30 mark rocked the entire Smart-Araneta Coliseum and had Ateneo fans going crazy. NU hit their shots but Ateneo always answered back. After missing an alley-oop, Slaughter put the ball in at the 2:27 mark for a 59-37 lead. Two free throws from Salva with 1:41 left in the game sealed the win for the Blue Eagles at 61-39.

The final game of the Blue Eagles for the season will be against number 2 seed Adamson on September 10, Saturday, at 3PM in the Smart-Araneta Coliseum. This win is crucial for the Eagles as a 14-0 sweep will mean a secured final spot and a thrice-to-beat advantage.

STATS OF THE GAME
SCORES:
ATENEO (61): Salva 14, Slaughter 13, Ravena 12, Long 10, Gonzaga 6, Golla 4, Monfort 2, Tiongson 0, Sumalinog 0, Chua 0, Austria 0

NU (39): Parks 10, Mbe 10, Javillonar 9, Alolino 4, Ignacio 4, Neypes 2, Villamor 0, Rono 0, Celiz 0, Khobuntin 0, Terso 0

Written by Althea Lapus

The Ateneo de Manila Blue Eagles bucked a lethargic first half to defeat the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons, 73-58, Thursday afternoon to claim win number 12 in UAAP Season 74.

Despite the slow first half, rookie center Greg Slaughter came up with a double-double performance – 18 points (12 of which came from the freethrow line) and 18 rebounds. Second stringer Justin Chua also had a double-double output – 11 points, 10 rebounds, on top of 2 blocks.

In the first quarter, the Fighting Maroons enjoyed 6 minutes with the lead before Tonino Gonzaga fired a trey to tie the score at 10. Chua followed it up with a basket to get the lead back for the Eagles, 12-10. A completed and-1 play by the reserve center gave Ateneo a 1 point lead at the end of the opening quarter 15-14.

Juami Tiongson opened the second quarter to give Ateneo a 3 point lead, 17-14. But pesky defense and unlucky shots allowed the Maroons to take over the lead at the 6 minute mark of the second quarter via a Carlo Gomez shot, 21-23. The Blue Eagles were able to recover towards the end of the quarter to retake the lead, 32-28, at the half.

With Coach Norman Black and the rest of the coaching staff making adjustments during halftime, the Eagles never relinquished their lead for the rest of the game. The Maroons were able to cut the lead to 5 points, the closest they got in the second half, before the Hail Mary squad exploded for a game high 24 point lead.

After the game, Coach Norman credited UP for their transition defense, “They did a very good job on their transition defense but we proved today we can play half court offense, which is going to be important down the stretch.”

The Blue Eagles are now down to their last two assignments for the eliminations. They will face the NU Bulldogs on Saturday, September 3, at 1 pm, in a game that Coach Norman described as “one that should be entertaining.”

SCORES:
ATENEO (73) – Slaughter 18, Salva 16, Chua 11, Ravena 7, Tiongson 5, Long 5, Austria 4, Gonzaga 3, Erram 2, Monfort 2, Pessumal 0, Capacio 0, Sumalinog 0

UP (58) – Silungan 16, Juruena 12, Maniego 7, Romero 6, Montecastro 4, Gamboa 4, Mbah 3, Wierzba 2, Gomez 2, Manuel 1, Gingerich 1, Pascual 0