THE ATENEO Men’s 3×3 Basketball Team finished without a win on day three of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 87 Men’s 3×3 Basketball tournament.
Facing their higher-ranked opponents, the Blue Eagles came up empty as the team suffered consecutive defeats at the hands of the National University (NU) Bulldogs and the University of the East (UE) Red Warriors. The games were held earlier today at Ayala Malls Manila Bay in Parañaque City.
Match versus NU
In their first battle of the day, the Blue Eagles faced the undefeated NU Bulldogs in what turned out to be one of the team’s best matchups of the tournament. The underdog Blue Eagles started out hot early on, nailing back-to-back threes courtesy of Andre Tan and Danger Tupas to gain the lead, 4-2.
Making full use of their massive size advantage, however, the Bulldogs pounded the ball into the paint, with BJ Palacielo quickly scoring two points to tie the game, 5-5. The Blue and White’s offense then went cold, drawing blanks from behind the arc that allowed NU to take the lead, 7-8.
Following an exchange of baskets between Tan and Palacielo, the Blue Eagles continued to test the top-ranked Bulldogs squad as they cut the lead, 9-10. However, NU’s size proved to be too much to handle for the Katipunan-based unit, as an array of offensive rebounds saw the Bulldog margin extend, 13-10.
Gritty as ever, Adam Dela Cruz’s basket from beyond the arc suddenly put the Blue Eagles only one point behind their foes from Jhocson, 13-14. As NU continued their forays at the rim, a miracle shot clock buzzer-beating bank shot by Tupas made it 15-16 with less than one minute remaining. After two free throws by the Bulldogs, Tan still gave the Blue Eagles hope after draining a corner basket to cut NU’s lead down to one anew with 30 seconds remaining.
Tasked to put away the game, Steve Nash Enriquez’s pull-up clanked off the rim, giving Ateneo one last shot to serve NU their first loss. However, Tan’s two-point heave with one second left was just off to the left, coming up short despite the team’s valiant effort and allowing the Bulldogs to narrowly escape, 17-18.
Match versus UE
Looking to earn their second victory of the season, the Blue Eagles went toe-to-toe with the UE Red Warriors in their last matchup of day three. Still ever-reliant on their outside shooting, Tan once again started the Blue Eagles off with a conversion from beyond the arc, giving Ateneo an early 2-0 lead.
The Blue Eagles also showcased their suffocating defense, limiting the Red Warriors to a measly one point throughout the first two minutes of the contest. Wello Lingolingo looked to provide a spark for UE, but the duo of Tupas and Dela Cruz maintained the Blue Eagles’ early dominance to extend Ateneo’s lead to five, 11-6.
Despite an impressive start from the Katipunan-based squad, a quick three-point run by the Red Warriors saw the Blue and White lead diminish to a mere two points at 11-9, as Lingolingo remained persistent in penetrating the Ateneo frontline. With just two minutes remaining in the matchup, the low-scoring affair had the Blue Eagles still holding on to their slim three-point margin, 13-10.
However, the Red Warriors continued to challenge the Blue and White, as Ateneo’s struggles to clean up the defensive rebounds directly led to another Lingolingo floater that cut the Ateneo cushion to just one point, 14-13.
Continuing UE’s run, Reynold Malaga scored off a beautiful up-and-under post move against Tupas, to tie the game at 15-all. With the score still tied, Tan’s veteran experience once again shined through, as the veteran hit a tough floater against contact to give the Blue Eagles a 16-15 advantage with only 11 seconds remaining. In need of just one more defensive possession to deliver their second victory, the Blue Eagles bared down on the other end.
To the Blue and White’s dismay, John Abate smoothly broke down his defender, leaving the hot-shooting Lingolingo wide open from deep. UE’s star guard buried the shot from deep, shifting the lead to the Red Warriors for the first time in the match, 17-16.
Still with a glimmer of hope, Tan found Tupas for his own attempt at a game-winning shot with three seconds left, but Tupas failed to find the bottom of the net, surrendering the win to UE with the final margin of 17-16.
The Blue and White will attempt to earn their second win as their campaign surges on against defending 3×3 champions De La Salle University tomorrow, May 2, at 4:20 PM in the same venue.
Box Scores:
Match versus NU
Ateneo (17): Tan – 6, Tupas – 4, Dela Cruz – 4, De Guzman – 3
NU (18): Manansala – 7, Figueroa – 4, Palacielo – 4, Enriquez – 3
Match versus UE
Ateneo (16): Tan – 9, De Guzman – 3, Dela Cruz – 2, Tupas – 2
UE (17): Lingolingo – 12, Malaga – 3, Abate – 2
Current Standings (W-L):
- NU Bulldogs (4-0)
- AdU Soaring Falcons (3-1)
- UE Red Warriors (3-2)
- FEU Tamaraws (2-2)
- UST Growling Tigers (2-2)
- DLSU Green Archers (2-3)
- ATENEO Blue Eagles (1-4)
- UP Fighting Maroons (1-4)
