THE ROAD to a back-to-back comes to an end for the Ateneo Blue Eagles as the defending champions failed to address their offensive miscues in the second half against the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons, 46-57. The semifinal bout took place earlier today at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.
Co-captain Chris Koon led the Blue and White with 10 points and eight rebounds in a valiant losing effort. Next to Koon was fellow wing Kai Ballungay who dropped eight points and snatched six boards.
Malick Diouf and Janjan Felicilda took charge for the Fighting Maroons, as the Season 85 Most Valuable Player stuffed the stat sheet with 12 points, 16 rebounds, three steals, and three blocks while Felicilda scored 10 points and grabbed five boards.
Defense dictated the pace in the first canto as both teams pressured each other into difficult baskets. Koon then drew first blood for the Blue Eagles by nailing a mid-range jumper at the 7:50 mark. Gerry Abadiano then scored UP’s first basket of the game from behind the arc after a defensive miscommunication between Ballungay and Jared Brown, 3-4.
Ateneo’s defense appeared to take a big hit. Big man Joseph Obasa picked up his second personal foul in under five minutes, leaving a big hole down low for the Blue Eagles without his rim protection. The Fighting Maroons immediately gained confidence to be aggressive, penetrating the paint as Diouf would finish over, 5-4. Despite having Obasa off the court, the first-seeded squad failed to capitalize on high-percentage shots and open looks outside the arc. It took long until Francis Lopez ended their dry spell that marked the last basket of the quarter, 7-11, in favor of Ateneo.
The Fighting Maroons immediately recouped from the onset of the second quarter as they tied the game in back-to-back plays from JD Cagulangan’s floater and Lopez’s freebies, 11-11. Within the same stretch, the Blue Eagles found themselves in early foul trouble, picking up two team fouls in less than a minute.
After a nip-and-tuck battle, backup guard Felicilda provided much-needed energy for the Fighting Maroons by making consecutive key plays on both sides of the court. The 5’7” playmaker sprinted downhill at the fastbreak for an easy layup to give UP the lead, 17-16.
The Blue and White then cut off the growing momentum from UP’s side with an open triple from Koon, 19-19, forcing the Fighting Maroons to call a quick breather. With both teams exchanging baskets, the Blue Eagles finished the first half in the driver’s seat as Mason Amos bullied his way through the paint for a high-percentage shot, 25-22.
In the second half, Ateneo stepped on the gas pedal with a Koon midrange jumper and an Obasa putback lay-in to extend their lead to seven, 29-22. As a response, UP veterans Diouf and Cansino commanded a 7-0 run to tie the ball game. Nonetheless, Koon eventually would regain the lead for the Blue Eagles with a triple, 32-29.
Continuing to suffer from foul trouble, Obasa picked up two fouls within a two-minute span, forcing Head Coach Tab Baldwin to adjust his regular rotation and sub in Geo Chiu. Diouf took advantage of the sudden switch-up, downing two straight buckets in the paint to give UP the one-point lead. Sean Torculas continued the late third-quarter surge for the Fighting Maroons with a block on Ian Espinosa, a banked three, and a steal leading to a fastbreak slam. This play gave UP the four-point advantage, 38-34.
Looking to put a stop to the opposition’s run, Espinosa converted an and-one opportunity to bring Ateneo within one, 37-38. To end the Maroons’ efficient quarter, Felicilda captured a loose ball and converted a floater. Harold Alarcon then added to his team’s lead with a long two-point jumper, closing the quarter with the Blue Eagles down by five.
To open the final period, Mason Amos gave Ateneo three quick points, cutting the UP lead down to two, 40-42. What followed was Gerry Abadiano, Lopez, and Felicilda opening up the floodgates, as the UP lead extended to nine. Brown hit a tough mid-range shot to end Ateneo’s short-lived scoring drought. However, a flurry of Ateneo misses and a Lopez transition layup sealed the Blue Eagles’ fate as their deficit continued to grow. The Battle of Katipunan concluded with Lopez sealing the game at the foul line to send the Diliman-based team to the finals, 57-46.
Head Coach Baldwin admitted that this heartbreaking loss brought a lot of emotion for the squad in the dugout. “We will be reminding one another in the months to come about the pain that we had so that [the fire] doesn’t go out,” the tactician added.
This humbling defeat concludes a rollercoaster title-defense campaign for the Blue Eagles after an 8-8 overall win-loss record in the elimination round, concluding with their first early Final Four exit in seven years.
In the next season, the Blue Eagles aim to regroup and learn from the several lessons gained but will have to do so without the services of Obasa, Quitevis, Chiu, and Jason Credo.
Box scores:
Ateneo (46): Koon – 10, Ballungay – 8, Espinosa – 7, Amos – 6, Obasa – 4, Brown – 3, Chiu – 3, Credo – 3, Quitevis – 2
UP (57): Diouf – 12, Lopez – 12, Felicilda – 10, Abadiano – 9, Torculas – 7, Cansino – 3, Cagulangan – 2, Alarcon – 2
Quarter scores: Ateneo-UP: 11-7, 25-22, 37-42, 46-57
