UAAP 76: Eagles Nip Tigers for Their 3rd Win

The Ateneo Blue Eagles survived a late game flurry to down rivals, UST, 61-57 in the Araneta Coliseum Saturday afternoon.

Kiefer Ravena led Ateneo with 13 points, while UST big man nabbed 15 boards, but only managed 6 points. 

Key Stats:

Admu Fg%- 22-of-66 (33.3 percent) 

UST Fg%- 20-of-59 (33.9 percent) 

Admu FT- Only 11-20, good for 55%

UST FT- 11-14, good for 78.6%

Aberrations:

Ateneo's free throw percentage nearly cost them the game. Instead of being able to pull away in the waining moments of the final quarter, the Eagles were plagued by missed charity shots from Nico Elorde and Kiefer Ravena which gave UST one last shot at a win. 

Ateneo's 14-5 edge in fastbreak points didn't necessarily seem to come about due to a tendency to fastbreak a lot. Rather, it came as a result of turnovers in near midcourt or long outlet passes from miscues by UST. Double teams on Karim Abdul and clogging passing and paint lanes c/o Ateneo led to many lead passes and easy makes. 

UST's 6 point opening quarter was followed up by a 15-6 blitz over Ateneo in the second. While wingman Aljon Mariano scored 16 and hauled in 9 rebounds in a losing effort, it can be said that he should have had more touches on the low block. UST failed to play up on mismatches which would have led to more inside points. Their sets were post heavy on Abdul and not on their wingmen like So, Ferrer, and Mariano. 

At times, UST's sets looked like Stan Van Gundy's formations during the Dwight Howard era in Orlando. Think Clark Bautista as Rafer Alston and Kevin Ferrer as Rashard Lewis, all chucking up 3's. Courtney Lee, meanwhile, would be played by Ed Daquioag and Aljon Mariano would play Vince Carter. 

Frank Golla scored 8 points on chippies, free throws, and a jumper. An aberration for now because this is indicative now of Ateneo's newfound tendency to pick and roll instead doing too much quick cutting and motion work on offense. 

Now, things get complex. As of this piece's writing, La Salle, NU, and Adamson U all sport 3-3 win loss slates, while UE and UST are tied at 4-3. Ateneo has now moved up to 3-4. FEU stands alone on top with a 6-0 record while UP takes the rear at 0-6. 

Now, more than ever, every game counts. 

The August 1-11 FIBA Asia break could be either boon or bane for those fighting for survival in the UAAP. Momentum smasher, or, a chance to heal up and be stronger come round 2? 

It only gets better from here.

MC