History, Toughness and Ateneo Basketball

by Christian Soler

IT WASN’T that long ago when Ateneo de Manila University seemed invincible and all-powerful in the elimination round of the UAAP.

The year was 2006, and the Blue Eagles looked to have capitalized on the absence of archrival De La Salle University. The Blue and White won all but two matches in that season’s 12-game regular season format. An eight-point defeat to University of Santo Tomas and a three-point heartbreaker at the hands of University of East failed to derail Ateneo’s crusade toward the number one spot.

The rest, they say, is history, a history that the Ateneo faithful would want to forget. The Blue Eagles blew a critical 1-0 advantage in the Finals against a Growling Tiger quintet that finished dead last after the first round of elimination games.

History, they say too, is written by victors. Hence, everyone seems to have forgotten the splendid numbers current pro JC Intal put up that year. His 18.2-point, 7.6-rebound average in 16 games was overshadowed by a catastrophic 5-of-21 shooting clip in that atrocious, 76-74 Game 3 Finals loss on October 2, 2006.

Intal’s partners in crime that year, Macky Escalona and Doug Kramer, aren’t enshrined in the memories of Ateneans in the same way that the likes of Enrico Villanueva, Rich Alvarez and LA Tenorio are. The latter group steered the Hail Mary Squad to its last title back in 2002, while Intal and co., well, lost it.

Such has been the harsh reality of Ateneo basketball since that memorable 2002 title team. Just last season, the Blue Eagles were a win away from the number two spot in the stepladder post-season, an advantage that would have proved invaluable against a La Salle squad that Ateneo had already defeated twice in the eliminations. Instead of securing that advantage, the Blue Eagles stumbled upon an already knocked out National University quintet, which blew out Ateneo by 15 in a pivotal third quarter run to hold on to a 96-88 win that relegated the Blue and White to a virtual best-of-three showdown with their nemeses.

Sure, Ateneo, which lost all three games to DLSU by at least 17 points before it got suspended for fielding in academically-ineligible cagers in 2005, was much more competitive against the Taft outfit in 2007. Norman Black’s wards lost two games to (and actually won three against) the Green Archers by a total of six points in Season 70. Problem is, the Blue Eagles lost the games that mattered.

The Blue Eagles’ current 11-win standing ties their 2003 record for most number of wins in the elimination round this decade, and is two wins away from tying the school-record 13 set in 1987. ’87 was a championship year, while 2003 wasn’t.

So how are the chips going to fall this year? With the way things are going, a run at the title looks to pass through the blue (not maroon) side of Katipunan and not Taft. A neutral observer will be quick to point that out, but a student or alumnus/alumna from Ateneo will rationally, thanks to history, think otherwise.

After Gec Chia’s backbreaking jumper against UE in the sudden-death, Final Four matchup in 2002, which sent Ateneo to the finals and eventually ultimate glory, luck nor logic hasn’t gone the Eagles’ path. The 149-year-old academic institution was expected to repeat in 2003, but lost to FEU. The year after, it lost ace gunner Larry Fonacier to a knee tear, tore the opposition apart by sweeping the first round of eliminations – only to lose six of their remaining nine games.

Season 71 seems to be a completely different story. Slotman Rabeh Al-Hussaini is averaging 17.8 points and 9.8 rebounds this season. His MVP-like numbers have surpassed the total number of points and rebounds he’s posted in all his playing years – 2005 to 2007 – combined. No player in recent UAAP or even collegiate hoops history has significantly upped his numbers this way.

Ateneo de Manila’s starting quintet of Al-Hussaini, Chris Tiu, Jai Reyes, Nonoy Baclao and Ryan Buenafe is the league’s highest-scoring first five. Even more surprising is that the Blue Eagles are atop the league as far as fastbreak points are concerned – not bad for a team criticized for its inept running game after the Joel Banal years – and commit the least number of turnovers a game.

Perhaps most important this season is what evades the numbers. The Blue Eagles are playing tough. Gone are the days when on-court bullies like Jerwin Gaco would elbow and shove the likes of Martin Quimson (2004) without reaction, Joseph Yeo trash-talking the Ateneo coaching staff (2004 as well) and getting a technical for it, Ryan Araña dancing in front of Eman Nazareno (2005) and Fil-American Jeff Valeriano of UST getting in Alvarez’s face (1999).

I am not advocating any form of violence, but the fact is that mental and even physical toughness are (really) prerequisites for a championship run. Be it trash-talking – something NABRO referees have absurdly cracked down on – a hard but clean foul or a nudge in the middle of a screen, an attitude is needed on-court.

The likes of Buenafe and spitfire Eric Salamat give Ateneo just that. Salamat’s tongue and multitude of warnings for “trash-talking” and “resentment to the call” are actually good for a school that’s been considered nice and soft since Banal, Villanueva and Wesley Gonzales bolted for the pros.

In 2002, Gonzales and Mac Cardona slugged it out at the South Gate of the Araneta Coliseum. I asked Banal what really transpired that day. He said, “I told Wesley to just finish whatever needed to be finished. So I let him get it on with Cardona.” That year, Ateneo defeated the Green Archers for the championship. This example may be quite extreme (and arguably shouldn’t happen anymore), but this is what the “never back down” mentality can give any squad.

Before the season started, I personally picked De La Salle to win the title over Ateneo. My main reason was that the Green Archers play to beat Ateneo and the rest of the league for that matter, whereas the Blue Eagles play not to lose. The Blue and White’s “One Big Fight” cry was always outmatched – on the hardwood at least – by La Salle’s “Wanna Fight” attitude. Fortunately for Ateneans, the attitude is there.

History won’t repeat itself if Ateneo’s learned from it. The talent, coaching prowess and depth have always been there for Loyola’s pride ever since it began making the Final Four in 1999. But something’s been on and off and lacking over the years. By now, any reader should get what I’m trying to drive at.


http://www.inboundpass.com/2008/08/25/history-toughness-and-ateneo-basketball


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Go, go, go Ateneo!!

I believe in you, guys. :)