Ateneo destroys NU, captures top seed in Final Four

ATENEO de Manila will be the top seeds heading into this year’s Final Four.

The Blue Eagles found National University an easier prey than they did last season after an 83-58 triumph to formally secure their twice-to-beat advantage in the semifinal round of the 71st UAAP men’s basketball tournament last August 30, 2008 at the Philsports Arena.

Ateneo masterfully executed its game plan against NU in the early goings, sprinting to an 18-5 first quarter advantage.

The Blue Eagles, though, evoked memories of their bitter defeat against the same Bulldogs quintet last season that cost them the twice-to-beat cushion. They squandered a 16-point first quarter lead and found themselves trailing by one, 31-32, inside the four-minute mark of the second period.

But the perimeter troika of Chris Tiu, Jai Reyes and Eric Salamat conspired for one big play after another to turn a close encounter into a full-blown rout.

Tiu completed a three-point play, Reyes knocked in a triple and Salamat scored a breakaway bucket at the halftime buzzer as Ateneo posted a 49-37 lead after the first 20 minutes of action.

Ateneo continued its solid showing for the rest of the second half. A Salamat basket put the Blue and White up by 15, 65-50 with 8:14 in the fourth period. Norman Black’s wards even extended the advantage to 21 points on six straight points by Rabeh Al-Hussaini, the last of which came in the 5:14 mark of the final quarter.

The Katipunan outfit managed to keep its cool for the duration of the game as well. In the early part of the first quarter, NU center Raymond Aguilar was meted an unsportsmanlike foul after elbowing Ryan Buenafe in a loose-ball situation. Edwin Asoro was then assessed with the same foul in a play with Ateneo forward Nonoy Baclao, who was then warned by the officials for “trash-talking.”

Although the showdown against De La Salle will not be a no-bearing game for his squad, Black said he will use this game as a fitting way to prepare for the tougher battles in the Final Four.

“People will come there to watch and see how Ateneo and La Salle will fight it out,” said Black. “Every Ateneo-La Salle game is like a championship bout, so expect everything in that game.”

It will be an important game for La Salle as it is in the hunt for the last of the two twice-to-beat advantages in the semifinals.

“They’re going all out in our next game. But we need these kinds of games to sharpen us for the semifinals,” Black said.

Al-Hussaini paced the Blue Eagles with 20 points and six boards, while Tiu, Salamat and Reyes all scored in double-digits.

NU, meanwhile, which fell to 2-11, was bannered by Asoro’s 19 points.

The scores:

Ateneo 83 – Al-Hussaini 20, Tiu 16, Salamat 12, Reyes 11, Buenafe 9, Baclao 4, Nkemakolam 4, Long 3, Burke 2, Salva 2, Baldos 0, Chua 0, Escueta 0, Gonzaga 0.

NU 58 – Asoro 19, Galapon 7, Luy 7, Jahnke 6, Aguilar 4, Tungcul 4, Berry 3, Batac 2, Catamora 2, Garcia 2, Magat 2, dela Cruz 0, Ponferrada 0.

Quarter scores: 26-16; 49-37; 61-48; 83-58

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Al-Hussaini, Tiu send UST to fifth loss of the season

ARGUABLY the UAAP’s most explosive duo once again delivered for Ateneo de Manila University.

Chris Tiu hit the big outside shots while Rabeh Al-Hussaini delivered down low as the Blue Eagles were virtually unstoppable in disposing of the University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers, 85-76, in the 71st UAAP men’s basketball tournament last August 14, 2008 at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.

Tiu, who is playing in his final year for the Blue Eagles, waxed hot to finish with 29 points, while Al-Hussaini went toe-to-toe with UST counterpart Jervy Cruz in the paint to tally 24 markers.

“We made our outside shots despite having a little problem in defending the shaded lane,” said Tiu, whose Blue Eagles upped their mark to a league-leading 8-1. “But we’ll take this win.”

Ateneo finished with a 14-of-31 clip from the paint, while UST shot 21-of-54.

“We’ve been hurting in the shaded lane, but the team with a high shooting percentage, of course, will win the game,” said Ateneo coach Norman Black. “We are aiming for the top two spots. I credit Al-Hussaini and Tiu for making crucial shots.”

Eric Salamat, who nearly suffered a dislocated jaw in the Eagles’ game against FEU last week, poured in 14 points.

The Growling Tigers threatened in the final period at 60-65, with Cruz scoring a jumper. But the Blue Eagles uncorked a 10-2 run to erect a 75-62 spread with 2:31 remaining.

UST, which never led throughout the game, slid to 4-5 and solo fifth place to fall a full game behind University of the East (5-4) in the hunt for the last semifinals berth.

Cruz had 23 points and 18 rebounds, while Dylan Ababou chipped in with 17 points for the Growling Tigers.

Ateneo stepped on the gas in the early going, with Tiu and Salamat scoring the points to help create a 20-7 lead with a minute to go in the first period.

The scores:

Ateneo 85 – Tiu 29, Al-Hussaini 24, Salamat 14, Austria 7, Reyes 4, Buenafe 2, Nkemakolam 2, Salva 2, Baclao 1, Baldos 0, Long 0.

UST 76 – Cruz 23, Ababou 17, Bautista 12, Allera 7, Fortuna 6, Canlas 3, Cuan 2, Gile 2, Mirza 2, Taylor 2, Camus 0, Fenequito 0.

Quarter scores: 20-11; 38-35; 63-55; 85-76

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Blue Eagles clip FEU, maintain solo UAAP leadership

ATENEO de Manila managed to convert only a single field goal in the final three minutes of its game against Far Eastern University. Fortunately for the Loyola faithful, it was more than enough.

Big man Rabeh Al-Hussaini delivered the only field goal for the Blue Eagles in that crucial stretch, but was decisive enough as his squad averted a near endgame collapse and preserved a tense 78-74 win over the Tamaraws in the 71st UAAP seniors basketball tournament last August 9, 2008 at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.

“When you lose a big lead, the best thing you can do is to win a game at a crucial stage,” said Ateneo coach Norman Black. “You can’t control things like that when you are at the sidelines. But we won it in the endgame and that’s the important thing.”

Al-Hussaini’s 16-point, nine-rebound effort was complemented by the efforts of Eric Salamat, who scorched the Tams with a game-high 18 points, including 4-of-5 from beyond the arc.

The Blue Eagles saw their nine-point lead in the final 3:32 wiped out by a
determined charge from the Morayta-based squad. By way of a 1-2-2 halfcourt zone trap, FEU was able to force Ateneo to commit costly miscues.

That resulted to an 8-0 blast capped off by an Andy Barroca basket off a Benedict Fernandez feed, which shoved the Tamaraws within striking distance, 74-76.

Instead of panicking, though, Black sued for time and mapped up one important play at the low block for Al-Hussaini. Sensing the Tamaraws’ lack of height at the post, he scored easily with 51 seconds remaining to give the Blue Eagles a slightly larger advantage at 78-74.

The Tamaraws had several chances to rescue the game. Forward Aldrech Ramos was fouled by Ryan Buenafe with 35 seconds to play, but muffed both charities that could have cut the deficit further.

In FEU’s next possession, Barroca was called for a travelling violation, which enabled Ateneo to secure its seventh win in eight matches to keep the Blue and White atop the team standings.

“We didn’t come out prepared against FEU’s 1-2-2 halfcourt press. That’s why we lost our big lead,” said Black. “But the good thing we did today is we challenged their perimeter shooting pretty well. We also hammered them inside because we knew we had the advantage, with FEU lacking big men.”

So effective was FEU’s trapping defense that it resulted to 33 points off turnovers. But Black has Salamat to thank for.

The 2005 NCAA juniors MVP, along with Kirk Long, hit back-to-back treys that opened up a fourth period upsurge for Ateneo, which took its biggest lead of the game at 67-52 with still 8:10 left.

The Tamaraws rallied though. A 13-4 run capped by Reil Cervantes’ inside bucket moved FEU to within four, 67-71. Salamat, however, responded quickly and knocked down his fourth three-pointer of the game to give Ateneo a 74-67 advantage, with 4:52 remaining on the clock.

“Eric is the anchor of our second team. He could have been the starter, but Chris Tiu is still playing with us. The good thing about him is he makes the most out of the time given to him and he can always be counted on when called off the bench,” said Black.

Cervantes led FEU with 14 markers, while Paul Sanga had 12. FEU dropped to third place as it absorbed its third loss in eight meetings.

The scores:

Ateneo 78 – Salamat 18, Tiu 16, Al-Hussaini 16, Buenafe 10, Long 5, Reyes 5, Baldos 3, Baclao 3, Salva 2, Austria 0, Nkemakolam 0, Escueta 0.

FEU 74 – Cervantes 14, Sanga 13, Fernandez 11, Barroca 9, Cawaling 7, Knuttel 6, Alisbo 5, Adolfo 4, Ramos 3, Tanuan 2, Macazo 0, Cabagnot 0.

Quarter scores: 13-15; 36-33; 57-51; 78-74

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UAAP Season 71 Round 2 Schedule

UAAP Basketball 2008-2009
SCHEDULE OF GAMES

MEN’S DIVISION

Second Round

Saturday, 9 August 2008 – ULTRA

4:00 pm FEU vs Ateneo

Thursday, 14 August 2008 – ULTRA

4:00 pm UST vs Ateneo

Sunday, 17 August 2008 – ULTRA

2:00 pm AdU vs Ateneo

Thursday, 21 August 2008 – Araneta Coliseum

4:00 pm Ateneo vs UE

Sunday, 24 August 2008 – Araneta Coliseum

2:00 pm Ateneo vs UP

Saturday, 30 August 2008 – ULTRA

4:00 pm Ateneo vs NU

Saturday, 6 September 2008 – Araneta Coliseum

4:00 pm Ateneo vs DLSU

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UAAP Basketball 2008-2009

SCHEDULE OF GAMES

WOMEN’S DIVISION

Second Round

Sunday, 10 August 2008 – Blue Eagle Gym

3:00 pm NU vs Ateneo

Sunday, 17 August 2008 – Blue Eagle Gym

9:00 am Ateneo vs UP

Wednesday, 20 August 2008 – Blue Eagle Gym

4:00 pm UE vs Ateneo

Sunday, 24 August 2008 – Blue Eagle Gym

11:00 am FEU vs Ateneo

Thursday, 28 August 2008 – Blue Eagle Gym

2:00 pm Ateneo vs DLSU

Sunday, 31 August 2008 – Blue Eagle Gym

11:00 am UST vs Ateneo

Wednesday, 3 September 2008 – Blue Eagle Gym

10:00 am Ateneo vs AdU

UAAP Basketball 2008-2009

SCHEDULE OF GAMES

JUNIORS DIVISION

Second Round

Saturday, 09 August 2008- Blue Eagle Gym

3:00 pm Ateneo vs FEU

Tuesday, 12 August 2008 – Blue Eagle Gym

10:00 am NU vs Ateneo

Saturday, 16 August 2008 – Blue Eagle Gym

3:00 pm UST vs Ateneo

Saturday, 23, August 2008 – Blue Eagle Gym

11:00 am Ateneo vs UE

Tuesday, 26 August 2008- Blue Eagle Gym

4:00 pm Ateneo vs UP

Saturday, 30 August 2008 – Blue Eagle Gym

1:00 pm Ateneo vs AdU

Saturday, 6 September 2008 – Blue Eagle Gym

11:00 am DLSZ vs Ateneo

Clutch Blue Eagles claw past UST, grab solo lead

ICE water ran through Ateneo de Manila University’s veins against one of the country’s oldest academic institutions.

The Blue Eagles pulled through when it mattered the most and carved out a 64-57 triumph over University of Santo Tomas to give them the solo lead at the end of the first round of eliminations of the 71st UAAP seniors basketball tournament last August 3, 2008 at the Araneta Coliseum.

Point guard Jai Reyes’ trey with 6:49 left in the third quarter gave the Blue Eagles their biggest lead, 39-29. And when the Tigers clawed their way back to a 54-52 lead thanks to back-to-back Khasim Mirza treys, the playmaker from Ateneo de Manila High School capped off a furious 9-0 run with a triple of his own with just 24 seconds left in the game.

Ateneo coach Norman Black said Reyes’ timely baskets underscored the squad’s tenacity on the defensive end, especially in the endgame.

“We just got back from what gave us a good start and that is playing good defense. We were beaten off the boards, but we made some good stops down the stretch and that was the most important thing,” said Black, whose wards improved to 6-1.

The Blue Eagles display a balanced attack against the Growling Tigers, with Rabeh Al-Hussaini leading the way with 17 points. Chris Tiu had 14, Ryan Buenafe added 12 and Reyes chipped in with 10.

Ex-West Negros College Mustang Nonoy Baclao had another splendid game as well, registering four blocks to go along with 11 rebounds.

All in all, Ateneo held the Tigers to just 26 percent from the field despite being outrebounded, 58-42.

Forward Dylan Ababou led UST, which dropped to 3-4, with 15 points. Big man Jervy Cruz was held to just eight points, and forced to take medium-range jumpers in lieu of his power game on the low block.

The scores:

Ateneo 64 – Al-Hussaini 17, Tiu 14, Buenafe 12, Reyes 10, Salamat 3, Baldos 2, Baclao 2, Nkemakolam 2, Long 1, Salva 1, Escueta 0, Austria 0.

UST 57 – Ababou 15, Allera 13, Cruz 8, Mirza 8, Fortuna 6, Bautista 3, Camus 2, Canlas 2, Fenequito 0, Gile 0.

Quarterscores: 13-12; 29-25; 49-45; 64-57

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