photo taken from here
NOTE: title borrowed from bacon austria's poem
the ateneo blue eagles are once again in the hunt for history as they gun for their fourth consecutive championship in the uaap basketball wars. last year's three-peat made them just the fifth team to achieve such feat (with ue, ust, dlsu, and feu), and this year's team will try to crack into an elite group of schools with four consecutive championships (incidentally, with ue, ust, and dlsu). the blue eagles are indeed "going 4 glory" in season 74, but as coach norman black mentioned at the beginning of the season, "the more you win, the bigger the target gets on your chest and the more people want to shoot you down."
after the first round, the hail mary squad finished with an immaculate 7-0 record. with the second round underway, let us try to rate the performance of the blue and white in the first round as well as make a preview for the rest of the season.
PHENOMenal (photo source)
offense. the blue eagles are currently the second best offensive team with a 72.43 ppg clip (next to dlsu's 72.71 ppg), also sporting the second best field goal shooting in the league at 40.18% (next to nu's 40.34%). the blue and white holds the distinction for the best fastbreak offense in the league with 17.86 fastbreak ppg, the best free throw shooting percentage at 74.32%, and the best in assists with 18 apg. nico salva has been the most consistent eagle on the court in terms of scoring, with ample support from the rest of the starters. emman monfort is the best distributor in the league this round with 4.3 apg with kirk long at 3rd with 3.4 apg. the blue eagles are included in the top 3 or 4 teams of most offensive stats, but the team is not designed primarily to be a high-octane run-and-gun team like the phoenix suns, though high scoring games and blowouts are always something worth savoring in basketball.
grade: B+
not in my house (photo source)
defense. taking pride in its defense for the past championship runs, the blue eagles are once again the best defensive team in the first round, limiting opponents to 57.86 ppg on a 31.14% shooting clip. they have also been fairly consistent in key defensive stats like rebounds, steals, and blocks with 43.71 rpg, 5.43 spg, and 4.14 bpg. monfort has provided tough physical defense with the best guards in the league while greg slaughter has protected our basket with intimidating inside presence (8.9 rpg and 2.1 bpg, both stats 3rd in the league). it's a joy watching kiefer ravena (tied with monfort with league-best 1.7 spg) and kirk long score transition points from steals. moreover, frank "the tank" golla (one of my favorite eagles this season), oping sumalinog, and jp erram have provided some defensive spunk off the bench with the "intangibles" they contribute like boxing out, making screens, and altering opponents' shots. as long as the team remains consistent in this field, a fourth title is not far within reach.
grade: A
band of blue brothers (photo source)
starting line-up. the ateneo starting five is the most productive bunch in the first round. "the phenom" kiefer ravena is currently 5th leading scorer in the league with 14.6 ppg, pacing the pack of fellow starters slaughter (14 ppg), salva, long, monfort for 57.29 ppg, the best average points for a starting five. yet, just like in the previous championship runs, i expect a minor revamp in the starting five as a starter will come off the bench to energize bench scoring (like ryan buenafe in season 72 and eric salamat in season 73), which is our weakest point so far this tournament.
grade: A
more BACON, please (photo source)
bench. however, sticking out like a sore thumb in the offensive stat sheet is the anemic bench scoring (15.14 ppg, worst in the league). much is expected from the bench in the second round as the likes of bacon austria, tonino gonzaga, and justin chua must step up once the opposing team try to limit the production of the starters. i'd also like to see more "bench-clearing" games with the likes of von pessumal, gwyne capacio, bonjovi cipriano and jeric estrada seeing some playing time on court. it is my sincerest hope though that juami tiongson will distribute the ball around rather than find his own shots in the next few games.
grade: D
emman, you the MAN! (photo source)
coaching, team chemistry and fatigue. coach norman black, hands down, is the best coach in the league, if not the land, since taking over the ateneo basketball system. he, together with assistant coaches sandy arespacochaga, jamike jarin, gene afable, and the rest of the coaching staff, raised the bar of college basketball varsity systems in terms of player development, conditioning, and recruitment. for sure, coach norman still has tricks inside his sleeves especially as opposing teams bring on a tougher grind for his boys. the team must be in high spirits now, but they should play with their feet on the ground, especially with a possible shake-up in the starting five/bench (possibly moving justin chua to the starting line-up to bring his confidence back? or making nico salva the off-the-bench-energizer-bunny guy?). i don't want to sound haughty here, but in case we go for 14-0 this season, the team must continue playing hard and hungry, avoiding the proverbial ring-rust and keeping their eyes on the prize.
grade: B+
nasa Fabilioh.com ka na naman!? (photo source)
my fearless forecast. the second round is expected to be a tougher one, with teams most probably employing new strategies and key adjustments the next time they face the blue eagles. nonetheless, i expect the team to keep working hard and maintaining that level of magis in their game. as i mentioned, if the blue eagles continue to play this way, it's not impossible that the team goes for a 14-0 record. but like the previous seasons, losing can also do good for the team as they can learn from their mistakes and make essential adjustments to the system (like UP loss in season 71, game 2 loss vs. UE in season 72 finals, and 4 elimination round loses in season 73), as long as they don't lose on the games that matter the most (never forget seasons 69 and 70!).
again, a fourth championship is not far from sight. until the title is won and a bonfire is set, let us adhere to the words of coach norman: "no yabang."
FLY HIGH!
GO ATENEO!
ONE BIG FIGHT!
special thanks to adrian dy AKA chinoy hoops fan for the stats.
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