THE ATENEO Blue Eagles faltered against the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons, 70-95, earlier this afternoon, May 24, 2023 at the Filoil EcoOil Centre in the City of San Juan. This matchup serves as the first iteration of the Battle of Katipunan since Ateneo’s victory over UP in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 85 Men’s Basketball Finals.
Joseph Obasa led the Blue Eagles with a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds, off a 62.5% shooting clip. Meanwhile, Mason Amos, coming off his Southeast Asian Games stint with Gilas Pilipinas, dropped nine markers along with seven boards in the losing effort.
Pace was the name of the game in the first quarter, as the Fighting Maroons were insistent on running in transition for easy buckets. Ateneo struggled to keep up with UP’s speed in the open floor, which led to a quick 8-0 run to start the game and force an early Ateneo timeout. The short break did little to deter UP’s momentum as they continued to attack the Blue Eagles early in the offense, which resulted in a 15-point lead for the Fighting Maroons. On the offensive end, Ateneo struggled from beyond the arc, which made it difficult to match UP’s scoring output. The first quarter concluded with Ateneo facing a 10-26 deficit.
In the second quarter, Ateneo managed to spark their offense in an attempt to cut into the Fighting Maroons’ lead. An early 11-0 run led by Amos, Obasa, and Jose Credo decreased the deficit to single digits, 22-31, but UP responded by running in transition for a 15-3 run of their own, 25-42. Despite their improved efforts on the offensive end, Ateneo went back into the dugout with a 28-47 disadvantage after the half.
Ateneo’s difficulty with their transition defense was made more evident in the third quarter. The Fighting Maroons made it rain triples with easy pull-up threes in transition and the Blue Eagles struggled to respond. CJ Cansino led the UP flurry with three triples to give UP the biggest lead of the game with a 29-point gap, 72-43. The Blue and White managed to end the quarter with a brief 5-0 run to stop the bleeding, but a 48-72 disadvantage still faced them with only 10 minutes left to mount a comeback.
On their part, Ateneo showed signs of life early in the fourth quarter. An 18-2 run led by Obasa and Kai Ballungay helped Ateneo cut the lead down to 61-74. However, Ateneo would fail to lessen the deficit past that 13-point mark as UP continued to outgun Ateneo with their early offense. The Fighting Maroons successfully weathered the storm and walked away with the victory at the final buzzer as the game ended in a 70-95 loss for Ateneo.
Playing in his first preseason game for the Blue Eagles, rookie Mason Amos shared his thoughts on getting a feel for the game. “I’m getting used to [playing in the Philippines], it’s my first game so I’m really just pushing forward. I know we lost today but that’s not gonna hold us back, we’re just gonna be looking forward to the next one.”
Additionally, Amos noted the absence of their head coach, but emphasized that their overall play was the main factor in their loss today. “Coach Tab [Baldwin] is a big help for us, obviously. But it’s really just us, we failed to execute. It’s early, we have a brand new team, all our seniors are gone. But I’m not gonna make that as an excuse ‘cause I know that we can be better,” the hopeful rookie added.
The Blue and White will look to bounce back in their next matchup against the National University Bulldogs tomorrow, May 25, at 4:00 PM at the same venue.
Box Scores:
Ateneo (70): Obasa – 13, Amos – 9, Credo – 8, Ballungay – 7, Padrigao – 7, Brown – 6, Chiu – 6, Bongo – 3, Gomez – 3, Tuano – 3, Lazaro – 2
UP (95): Alarcon – 16, Diouf – 16, Cansino – 14, Fortea – 12, Lopez – 11, Felicilda – 5, Pablo – 5, Torculas – 5, Torres- 5, Cagulangan – 2, Gagate – 2
Quarter Scores:
Ateneo-UP: 10-26, 28-47, 48-72, 70-95
