Round 1 goes to the Green Archers

It was a strange, foreign feeling for most of the Ateneans. For the first time in two UAAP seasons, the Green Archers had triumphed over the Blue Eagles.

The Blue Eagles were tripped by the Archers, 63-66, in their first round match-up of UAAP Season 73. It was definitely a heartbreaking game for defending champions hoping for a three-peat.

Despite the setback, Coach Norman Black chooses to look at the bright side. “We’ve done a very good job over the years of bouncing back from losses. Most of the players have championship experience. I don’t think you can expect them to just roll over and die.”

The Blue Eagles led by nine points with four minutes to go in the game. After struggling to score all game, their offense finally clicked early in the fourth quarter. Emman Monfort, Justin Chua, Kirk Long and Nico Salva all contributed to a massive 20-7 run that brought the Ateneo side of the stadium to their feet. A shot clock-beating jumper from Salva gave the team a seemingly insurmountable 62-53 lead.

Unfortunately for the Blue Eagles, they would score only one more point after that. DLSU went on a 13-1 run to end the game. Archer Samuel Marata hit back-to-back threes in the final two minutes, the last one giving La Salle the lead for good.

The Blue Eagles had a chance to tie the game, but Chua’s three-point attempts bounced harmlessly off the rim. The Archers took advantage of the Eagles’ troubles at the end game. Long fouled out of the game with a little over two minutes remaining, while a hardworking Monfort had to be helped out off the court after suffering from cramps.

The Blue and White Faithful that had not seen its Blue Eagles lose to their rivals for a long time. The usually rowdy Ateneo crowd was subdued, even shocked at the result.

“We did not finish strong at all in this game,” Coach Norman said afterward. “It wasn’t the offense that let us down; it was the defense.”

Still, the Blue Eagles themselves remain optimistic. Long puts more pressure on himself, Monfort and Eric Salamat to be the leaders of the team. “It’s (our) time to step up. We could’ve done a better job today.”

Long also assures the Ateneo community that the next Ateneo vs La Salle game will have a different outcome. “We’ll get them next time. We just have to keep fighting.”

Both teams shot poorly from the field, but La Salle was able to make up for it. The Green Archers had 16 fast break points over the Blue Eagles’ five, and also scored 13 points off Ateneo’s turnovers. The Blue Eagles’ three-point shooting remains suspect, as they connected on only five out of 17 attempts.

The Eagles get back on court to battle it out with the National University Bulldogs on July 31, Saturday, 4pm at the Araneta Coliseum.

By Camille Eugenia B. Naredo