come with me to the sky, let us fly (photo source)
three points on the blue eagles' win against the growling tigers to take game 1 of the uaap season 75 men's basketball finals. in this match-up against katipunan and espana for pride and glory that uaap basketball has to offer for a season, ateneo has a game left to win for a historic five-peat, but still nothing is safe for them as the dangerous ust team is out to give their best try to bounce back and level the series.
niconsistent (photo source)
1. 3rd quarter storm... again. looking at the first half of play, it seemed that the blue eagles were falling into a trap that no one from the blue side of the arena wants to see: a 0-1 hole against the growling tigers. they were missing from close range, turnovers were abounding, and the team, except nico salva who was stellar in the entire game with his career high 30 points, were sinking instead of swimming against the giant waves (oh yes, the yellow colored crowd did the infamous "jeje-wave" for most of the game) of the squad from espana. but the third quarter showed flashes of the blue eagles of old, especially that patented third quarter storm that turned the tides of numerous games during the championship era. a 17-0 run that silenced the noisy ust gallery as well as their team for more than 7 minutes made the difference for the blue eagles. clearly, their third quarter play was way different than that of the first half: they were more aggressive in the paint, they distributed the ball efficiently, and defended better against ust. time and again, the adjustment from the halftime break made wonders for ateneo, and with a pivotal second game coming up, they must use it hopefully to sustain a big lead they made in the first half and "finish what they have started" come thursday.
big shot buenafe strikes again (photo source)
2. game ending heroics... again. just when ust threatened to take the game away with a furious comeback from a 10 point deficit, ateneo's finishers did what they do best: end the game right. aljon mariano found his range early in the fourth quarter and that karim abdul dunk on the break brought the ust crowd back on their feet. when a team goes up against ust, the players must always remember that no lead is safe against them as they have the ability to come back strong. but juami tiongson, ryan buenafe, and kiefer ravena had something else in mind. tiongson, who was steady in this game with his ball-handling and three-point shooting, made a magical lay-up courtesy of the open lane that ust interestingly gave him when they were starting to mount a rally for a furious finish. buenafe, whom coach norman black described as a "money player", came once again with a crucial three pointer plus a foul to somehow douse cold water on ust's "firemen" who wanted to keep the game more interesting. and ravena, who played distributor in the first half, made a final jumper to drive the nail in the coffin and take the first game. as much as these end-game heroics were a delight to the eyes of the blue eagles sixth man, they cannot wait for that moment when they can go hero-ball like other players from other teams love to do. they have to play hero all throughout the game with their execution, teamwork, and intensity in all forty minutes of basketball.
wala... WALA NG GAME 3! (photo source)
3. here we go... again. we've gone this far this season, and with a victory left to claim, the blue eagles have to treat their game on thursday "like there's no tomorrow." for the past championship seasons, i've been using that phrase as a reminder that every game should be taken with an "elimination game" mindset, as if we are the ones trailing and at the brink of going home for good. much has been said about 2006 and season 69, but like the last four championship seasons, the blue eagles are back in that scenario where they lead 1-0 and are just 40 game minutes away from a championship. they must not let complacency and overconfidence ruin their game. they should not think of the bonfire yet, or the hefty rewards that would come to what could be the last season where they would enjoy these perks. they ought not to give ust an inch lest they put another playing date this coming weekend. the enemy is dangerous, and the blue eagles know that very well. if they want to keep the title in katipunan, they must give their all and consider thursday as their last game of the season.
napaos kasisigaw ng "sir philip!" (photo source)
The scores:
Ateneo (83) – Salva 30, Ravena 13, Tiongson 12, Buenafe 10, Chua 9, Slaughter 5, Gonzaga 2, Elorde 2, Sumalinog 0, Golla 0.
UST (78) – Teng 25, Mariano 22, Ferrer 13, Abdul 9, Fortuna 4, Lo 3, Pe 2, Bautista 0.
Quarters: 18-24, 31-38, 61-51, 83-78.
photos from sirs yohan janeo, raddy mabasa, erwin cabbab, and philip sison of fabilioh.com
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