DRIBBLE, HANDOFF, screen, roll, pocket pass, swish. This set was run a few more times before Head Coach John Flores concluded the early morning practice. It’s a cold July morning, and the Ateneo Lady Eagles are right in the middle of their preparations for the upcoming University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) season.

A series of tight losses characterized Season 80 for the Lady Eagles as inconsistencies and late game lapses left them at sixth place with a 4-10 record; since their cinderella run to the finals in Season 78, the Lady Eagles have yet to regain their groove at the highest level of collegiate basketball. With the loss of Tina Deacon and Hazelle Yam, two of the team’s most consistent players last season, the Lady Eagles will climb an even steeper hill to break out of the bottom four.

Nevertheless, the Lady Eagles remain undaunted. Despite losing out, 60-70, against National University in the Philippine Chinese Amateur Basketball League (PCABL), the Blue and White gave the reigning UAAP champions a run for their money. After their valiant effort, confidence and team chemistry are at an all time high. With the team employing new schemes and fresh faces, the squad is poised to be a dark horse ready to break into the Final Four this season.

Changing of the guards

As a strong inside presence who can play the post and can go head-to-head against other bigs in the UAAP, Deacon was a vital force for the Lady Eagles and her departure left a gaping hole in the middle for the Lady Eagles. Now severely undersized, a lot of adjustments had to be made offensively and defensively. One such adjustment is playing a faster pace to compensate for the team’s lack of size. “Our dynamics on offense and defense had to be tweaked to take advantage of the team being faster and a lot quicker,” Coach Flores shared.

Another adjustment is the point of emphasis on offense. Switching from a drive and post-heavy attack last year, the Lady Eagles will play a more perimeter-oriented offense this season, focusing more on the three-ball to create imbalances in the opposing defenses. With this small ball offense, versatility will be a premium, and the team’s bigs have embraced the change. “Our bigs, they’re starting to learn to shoot from the outside,” sophomore guard Jhazmin Joson noted. “We’re teaching them how to score and drive and shoot.”

The versatility of the team’s wing players is also a crucial asset. With Katrina Guytingco and rookies Jay Nimes and LJ Miranda able to slide into the four spot in short spurts, the team can maximize the space on the court, stretching defenses to open driving lanes for the team’s slashers. Balance will be key for the Lady Eagles’ offense as Joson also reiterated the need to take smarter shots. Knowing when to settle for jumpers and when to take the ball into the rack would undoubtedly be an invaluable addition to the team’s offensive arsenal.

Grinding it out

With the importance of versatility and basketball IQ in the team’s offensive schemes, practices have been focused on the mental aspect of the game. “Our training [is] more focused on reads, more on scientific, mental, and team basketball unlike other schools na [skills-focused],” Joson shared.

Nimes also bared that the team does a lot of lecture sessions with Coach Flores which allow rookies to familiarize themselves with Flores’ coaching system. On top of all this, correcting their weaknesses from past seasons remains a priority during trainings. “We’re just all really working on transition and [on] how to close out games,” veteran forward Cara Buendia noted.

Aside from the mental aspect of the game, the team is also being prepared physically. Playing at a faster pace requires relentless stamina, and being undersized means that each player would be banging bodies with bigger players. With that in mind, strength and conditioning Coach Migs Aytona has employed a more personalized program for every player.
Coach Aytona keeps a close eye on the players both on and off the court to ensure every player observes a proper diet and stays hydrated. According to Team Captain Nicole Cancio, it’s working wonders for the team. “Everyone’s getting a bit faster, a lot stronger. Everyone jumps higher,” the versatile forward shared. “I [can] personally say that I got stronger with Coach Migs’s program.”

A key difference in the Lady Eagles’ preseason preparation this year is the amount of games they played. Participating in the PCABL and the International Collegiate Youth Invitational Tournament in Macau exposed Coach Flores’ squad to taller and more experienced teams that elevated the team’s mindset and approach to the game.

“What other Asian teams do [is the same as] what we’re already doing here,” said Cancio as she recalled Coach’s Flores’ lesson during their Macau trip. “If we do things right, if we execute, if we follow the system, if we know each detail, that’s what we can look like.” That kind of discipline, of doing things the right way, is what the team is trying to emulate heading into the new season.

Shifting the paradigm

An “unselfish brand of basketball” is what Cancio wants to infuse into the team culture this season. “Last year, we were a team na madaling mataranta, we weren’t as unselfish (Last year, we were a team that would get frantic, we weren’t as unselfish),” shared the team captain.

Expect that to change this year. By trying to lead through example, the veteran bruiser has stepped up to ensure every player understands the whole play; every screen, cut, and pass must be understood by heart. Being unselfish doesn’t just mean sharing the ball, it also means making the best pass, making the right decisions, executing, and placing each teammate to their best advantage on the court.

In order to accomplish this, it must start from the veterans. From being a player whose sole focus was bringing out her best on the court, Cancio is now the second voice in the locker room as well. That said, she is expected to step up and set an example of this “unselfish brand of basketball”.

Communication is another key part of the this team-centric culture. “Everyone is required to communicate whether you’re a rookie or a veteran,” Cancio shared. With this comes a shift in the culture of accountability. Whenever somebody commits a mistake, everyone is accountable to call her out. Likewise, when somebody performs admirably, everyone acknowledges it. “Everyone’s mentality is less about themselves and more about the team,” she explained.

Every so often, the team goes bonding moments off the court that include going to a teammate’s house to hang out or satisfying their appetite together with Korean barbeque, which built the team’s chemistry on and off the court. “We don’t want the barkadahan,” Cancio bared. “Anyone can be with anyone on the team. Walang iwanan is basically what we want.”

With the infusion of new blood into the system, a new mantra, and a more communal basketball mindset, the Lady Eagles’ reincarnation in UAAP Season 81 will introduce a new kind of grit, hustle, and approach to the game, and with it, a renewed hope to end their postseason dry spell.