Sports

Weekly Takeaways: Changing things up for the Lady Eagles as they prepare for the second round

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Published October 16, 2018 at 1:54 pm
Photo by Zoey Ignacio

In line with the ongoing University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 81 Women’s Basketball tournament, this series will dive into the details of the Ateneo Lady Eagles’ performance as they aim to secure a final four spot.

Recap of the week (September 30 to October 10)

Photo by Zoey Ignacio

With two consecutive defeats that came in their way, the Lady Eagles needed to bounce back against the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Golden Tigresses, a team looking to contend for the title. However, the Blue and White’s offensive execution was below-par last September 30 and the team looked off-rhythm as they were dismantled, 38-67 .

After getting toppled by UST, the Lady Eagles extended their losing skid to four as the Adamson University (AdU) Lady Falcons glided past them, 54-72, last October 6. Despite the loss, the Katipunan-based side’s strong second half performance, particularly in the defensive end, gave supporters something to look forward to in their next matches.

The momentum they had was short-lived, however, when they faced the De La Salle University (DLSU) Lady Archers. The Katipunan-based side was beaten convincingly by their rivals from Taft, 56-82, on October 10. A total of of 26 turnovers in the first 3 quarters spelled disaster for the team as they ended the first round with a 2-5 record, losing five in succession.

Ateneo-UST: 6-14, 16-36, 24-49, 38-67

Ateneo-AdU: 9-25, 22-46, 39-59, 54-72

Ateneo-DLSU: 5-16, 12-44, 29-71, 56-82

Upcoming games

October 17, Wednesday, 10AM vs. Far Eastern University  (FEU) Lady Tamaraws

October 21, Sunday, 8AM vs. University of the Philippines (UP) Lady Maroons

October 27, Saturday, 11AM vs. University of the East (UE) Lady Warriors

November 4, Sunday, 10AM vs. National University (NU) Lady Bulldogs

1. Being aggressive on defense right from the get-go

Photo by Zoey Ignacio

Jamie Alcoy drives to his right but Ateneo immediately clamps down on her and Jollina Go strips the ball away. She takes it coast-to-coast with an off-balanced layup! This sequence is one of the many times when the Lady Eagles were able to get points on the board off a defensive stop in the second half in their match against Adamson.

Against the Golden Tigresses, the Blue and White displayed tremendous defense but they lacked the creativity and finishing on offense that could have made the game much closer than what the scoreline suggested. In terms of uncontested shots, the Lady Eagles had 7 while UST only had 3. It speaks volume on how Ateneo, despite giving up 67 points, contained the Golden Tigresses’ offense and challenged their shots well.

In addition, the España-based side only recorded eight assists in the entire game, compared to the Lady Eagles’ 13. This shows that even though the Gold and White tallied almost double the output of Ateneo, they did not easily break down Ateneo’s defense to get shots they were comfortable with. Instead, they had to rely heavily on individual brilliance to add to their account.

A week after, Ateneo faced AdU for their sixth game. The Lady Eagles were poor on defense, to say the least, in the opening two quarters. In the first half alone, the Lady Falcons already doubled Ateneo’s tally which started their stellar 19/41 (46.34%) shooting on the floor. It was a complicated situation for Ateneo to remedy as the Lady Falcons, in effect, were able to convert once every two attempts. To add, the Blue and White only had a single steal and they were not able to convert the seven AdU turnovers into points when the teams headed into their respective dugouts.

However, as the saying “no two halves are exactly the same” goes, the tables turned after the break. The Lady Eagles emerged bodying up AdU’s drives, challenging shots, and hustling for the loose balls with a renewed intensity.They kept their hands in the passing lanes and went in aggressively for the steals. It did not come as a surprise that Ateneo racked up five steals in the second half given the way they played.

Their transition defense improved tremendously as well, as the Lady Falcons managed to score only four fastbreak points after the break, half of what they had in the opening two quarters. The adjustments the team made on defense in the second half rewarded them on offense as they outscored Adamson 32-26. Their intense and relentless defense in the second half awarded them seven of their 11 fastbreak points.

The Lady Falcons’ carelessness with the ball became more evident when the Katipunan-based side stepped up their defensive intensity. Adamson committed 10 turnovers in the second half, adding up to 17 in total for them at the sound of the final buzzer. The Blue and White’s fortune did not end there. Not only were they getting stops, but they were also able to convert AdU’s carelessness with the ball into offense as they tallied 10 points off turnovers.

Defensively, Ateneo had a lackluster showing when they went head-to-head with their Taft-based rivals. The Archers capitalized heavily on the Blue and White’s poor transition defense, mustering 17 fastbreak points. The Green and White also made a living out of Ateneo’s interior defense, accumulating 46 points in the shaded area.

Based on their recent games, the team plays poor defense to start the game, but they have shown the ability to recover and make adjustments in the second half. Of course, it is a great sight for players and coaches to witness that they have it in them to react positively even though they are trailing at the half. However, the challenge for them as they enter the second round is be aggressive to start the matches which will keep them competitive heading into the second half.

2. Absorbing the opponent’s defensive pressure and sprinting back on defense

Photo by Zoey Ignacio

The Lady Eagles were having a hard time bringing up the leather early on in their games because of their opponents’ full court pressure. Over Ateneo’s first four games, they averaged 24 turnovers per contest. Similar numbers can be seen in the team’s next two games, turning the ball over 24 and 26 times against UST and AdU, respectively.

When the Lady Eagles took on the Golden Tigresses, 13 of their 24 turnovers were already committed at the opening half of the game. This gave UST the opportunity to punish the Blue and White, scoring ten points off Ateneo’s turnovers. It was another double whammy for the Katipunan-based side as they gave up offensive possessions which put up points for the Golden Tigresses.

Ateneo improved after the break as they limited their turnovers to 11. As a result, UST had less points off turnovers as well, only making six in the second half. Despite executing better offense, their shots still were not falling. The Golden Tigresses recognized this so they had designated outlets when they hauled in the defensive rebounds. The España-based side would push the ball quickly up the floor and get themselves transition baskets to maintain their lead. UST recorded 10 fastbreak points at the end of the game, all coming from the second half.

Onto the next game, the Lady Eagles, yet again, faltered early on, turning the ball over eight times in the first frame due to AdU’s length and full court pressure. They committed six more in the next quarter, gifting eight points off turnovers in total to the Lady Falcons in the first half. Consequently, the Blue and White found themselves in a huge hole heading into the break, 22-46.

Coming out of the dugout, it was Ateneo’s turn to be the aggressors. They forced 10 turnovers in the next two quarters, three more than what the Lady Falcons had at the first half. They also did a better job taking care of the ball, committing less turnovers at the second half with just 12. They also defended significantly better, only giving up 4 points off their turnovers.

Turnovers were the name of the game for the Lady Eagles when they squared off against their Taft-based rivals. The team committed an astounding 32 turnovers in the entire game. To make matters worse, they were severely punished by DLSU as their opponents scored 32 points off turnovers. By halftime, Ateneo was already in a 12-44 deficit which meant that they had a whole lot of ground to make up.

The Blue and White struggled mightily against the Green and White, characterized by the numerous turnovers they had. It allowed the Lady Archers to stretch their lead by as much as 45 points. Although a fightback posted 27 markers in the fourth quarter, the deficit was simply too immense for a comeback.

In the following games in the second round, the Ateneo Lady Eagles will need to weather the defensive storm of their opponents. Calmness and composure should come into play for the Lady Eagles and the team cannot allow themselves to trail by such a huge margin heading into the dugout. Statistically, they play better basketball after halftime, however, they need to stay within touching distance in the first half for it to reflect on the final score.

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