a picture that paints a thousand words (photo source)
three points on the blue eagles' win against the tamaraws in the second round of uaap season 75. this highly physical game that the blue eagles won notched their seventh consecutive victory this season and their eighth in nine games.
ouch (photo source)
1. mental toughness above physical toughness. ateneo-feu games have become intensely physical in nature, and their second meeting this season was surely a brutal one from the jump ball until the final buzzer. in their last meeting, greg slaughter was on the receiving end of all the derailing brought about by the bringas brothers, nico salva received some blows and elbows from his defenders, and kiefer ravena struggled to find his shot as bigger defenders hounded him on the floor. as the intensity of the game went to a higher level, its physical brutality naturally followed suit: holds became grapples, boxing out converted into hidden closed fists behind the referees' backs, and trash talking turned into spit firing. three players even had to be sent out of the playing court, including ryan buenafe who had his first starting stint this season but had to watch the remainder of the game on the press room. feu might have had these as part of the ploy to distract the blue eagles with their physical might, but ateneo had other things in mind. they continued to share the ball and find the open man, defend and force terrence romeo to be trigger happy, and limit the usual production of feu's scorers like rr gracia and anthony hargrove.
toro-ing tamaraw (photo source)
mind games are part of any competitive sport. there's always an advantage to a player or team to get into the head of the opponent and in turn distract or even put him or her out of the game. but hurting the opponent. especially if it is deliberate, is a disgrace to the sport. and when the other team desires to beat you by beating you up, this is where mental toughness comes to the rescue. no matter what kind of acts the other team brings on court, if you keep your focus on the game and deliver more than what is expected of you, a victory is close at hand. the blue eagles proved that against the tamaraws in this highly physical encounter. as long as they stick on the game plan and execute the plays as done in practice, they will find their shots and increase their chance of winning.
"magic tiongson" does it again (photo source)
2. connecting from way downtown. one thing that we rarely see in an ateneo game this season is draining a three-point shot. the blue eagles were second to the last in the league in terms of three point shooting, as seen in previous games. in recent memory and history, ateneo has produced players who have a knack of hitting shots from beyond the arc: larry fonacier, la tenorio, magnum membrere, chris tiu, jai reyes, kirk long, and emman monfort, to name a few. in the first two championships, three pointers played a crucial role in the offensive attack, as it gave guards an open look as their defenders had to contain big men like enrico villanueva, rich alvarez, rabah al-hussaini, and nonoy baclao in the shaded area. with slaugther inside, finding an open man to hit from downtown should be easy, but it seems that our resident shooters have yet to find their range this season. but in this game, ateneo netted a total of seven three pointers this game: four from juami tiongson, two from ravena, and one from von pessumal. this is a very welcome development for the blue eagles as it adds another facet to their game. it is my hope though to see more of this in the coming games.
everybody loves a winner (photo source)
3. composure, class, conduct. it has been a game laced with commotions and filled with fireworks, but in the end, the true winner is the team who acts will composure, class, and conduct. acts like spitting on the opponent, inflicting blows and elbows in an occult manner, cornering a player to the side while planting an elbow somewhere in his body, and instigating a fight are acts truly unbecoming of an athlete, or even as a part or member of a particular institution. it is very unfortunate to have such a scene come into picture during this game. suspensions might have already been given but i think there is much work to be done not only in disciplining players but even coaches and other bench personnel. moreover, referees have to assert themselves more to gain control over the game. overall, this game is not only a test for ateneo if they are still the best team in the league, but also a testimony of their guts and nerves of steel as well as a mark of class that is proper to student athletes whom people look up to as models and idols.
The Scores:
ADMU (77) – Tiongson 16, Salva 15, Ravena 12, Slaughter 10, Chua 8, Erram 8, Elorde 4, Pessumal 4, Buenafe 0, Capacio 0, Golla 0, Gonzaga 0, Sumalinog 0.
FEU (64) – Garcia 14, Romeo 13, Hargrove 10, Bringas A. 7, Mendoza 6, Escoto 5, Cruz 3, Iñigo 2, Bringas M. 2, Pogoy 2, Belo 0, Guerrero 0, Jose 0, Sentcheu 0.
Quarter Scores: 15-13; 32-34; 49-43; 77-64
photos from sir philip sison of fabilioh.com
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