FACING THE undefeated first seed in the 2026 U-Belt Collegiate Invitational Cup, the Ateneo Blue Eagles lost vital momentum to the National University (NU) Bulldogs, 73-76. The Blue Eagles’ fourth match of the tournament took place earlier today, May 22, at the Arellano University Gym in the City of Manila.

The Blue and White’s third loss in the last four games drops Ateneo to a 1-3 record, decreasing their chances of entering the U-Belt’s Elite Eight bracket. 

Matt De Luna led the way for Ateneo, contributing 16 points, three triples, and two assists. Thirdy Ebdane and Sultan Baruwa supported the Blue Eagles’ effort with 11 and 10 points each. Additionally, highly touted recruit Malcolm Tyler showcased his repertoire with nine points, seven rebounds, and one block.

Jelomar Rota set the tone for the Blue Eagles, bullying his way into the hole for the foul as he split the Blue Eagles’ first free throws, 1-0. As NU’s EJ Sapasap nabbed a layup on the other end, Ebdane mitigated the attack with his own three-point make, 4-4. Failing to contain two more Sapasap drives that included an and-one, Baruwa and Michael Asoro returned the favor with inside looks that kept the game close, 8-9.

Another exchange of baskets ended with Logan Baltazar’s attack on the paint as the quarter reached its midpoint, 12-11. Entering the game for the first time, the Blue and White’s Malcolm Tyler made his presence known with a soft jumper, 14-11. After four unanswered points by the Bulldogs, the Blue Eagles conducted a 6-0 sprint capped off by De Luna knocking down a three, 21-15.

Tyler’s defensive excellence eventually waned as the Bulldogs barreled into the paint, 21-17. On the other end, Jakob Salgado continued Ateneo’s barrage of triples with one of his own to keep the lead alive, 24-17. However, the Blue Eagles failed to bother the aggressive Bulldogs offense as they cut the lead to three, 24-20.

Opening the second frame of the contest, Tyler showed off his silky touch with a quick floater, 26-20. Despite NU’s effort to close the gap, Ateneo kept their lead intact following De Luna and Tyler attacking the restricted area with their size, 30-24. With the rookie center racking up minutes, the Bulldogs started taking advantage of his fatigue as they went on a 8-2 run to put the game in a deadlock, 32-32.

Both teams began to exchange the advantage with tough baskets, which was eventually broken by De Luna getting the lucky bounce on a three-pointer to keep the Katipunan-based squad ahead, 38-37. Charity baskets from De Luna and Baruwa then added to the margin, but NU’s Jid Locsin’s speedy layup did not allow Ateneo any breathing room, 42-39.

Marcus Nicolas then took matters into his own hands, driving into a wall of defenders and banked in an and-one layup, 45-39. Despite this upward trajectory, the Blue Eagles yielded two more buckets to the Bulldogs as the half came to a close, 47-43.

Ateneo switched their gameplan exiting the break, opting to run Tyler with the starting unit instead of Baruwa. The 6’10” newcomer opened the frame by drilling his first triple to extend their lead, 50-43. Ateneo was soon tested at the rim with Sapasap securing an and-one, 50-46. Ebdane replied with a tough and-one floater on the other end, 53-46.

The Blue Eagles’ control of the game slowly faded away with the Bulldogs getting another 6-0 run, 53-52. Bringing back life into the Blue and White, Chris Urbina drove hard on the baseline which netted him two free throws, followed by Baruwa sinking an inside basket, 57-52. After NU’s Jolo Navarro drained a mid-range shot, Baruwa connected on the transition layup and charity visit to end the third quarter, 60-54.

As the final canto started, Ateneo lost their defensive step with NU swiftly bringing the contest to a deadlock, 60-60. De Luna and Ebdane traded rim-running attempts at the rim with the Bulldogs which left the game at another tie, 64-64.

During a fastbreak possession by the Bulldogs which resulted in a Navarro lay-in, 64-66, Baltazar came down hard on his left knee. Baltazar would promptly be substituted and sit for the rest of the match.

Ateneo was subjected to another layup by NU, before Ebdane knocked down the long-range basket to deflate the gap to one, 67-68. With the Bulldogs extending the advantage once more on the coattails of Dwyne Miranda and Locsin, De Luna buried a clutch triple to keep the Blue Eagles in the ball game, 70-71.

Another chance to tie the game surfaced when NU’s Kurt Perciano split his free throws, as Baruwa vacuumed a missed attempt by Ateneo and jammed in the ball, 72-72. Conversely, the Blue and White suffered a miscue on defense which left NU’s Miranda open for the floater, 72-74.

Coming out of the timeout, Ateneo found a cutting Urbina who was sent to the charity line following a hard foul. Urbina would split his charity shots, forcing the Blue Eagles to foul NU’s John Reyes, 73-74. The match then favored NU’s chances as Reyes sank two charity baskets, 73-76.

With one more opportunity to either win or send the game to overtime, Asoro found room on the left wing to release a three-pointer which rolled out of the cylinder, ending the game in defeat, 73-76.

Following the loss, the Blue Eagles seek to keep their playoff hopes afloat against the Arellano University Chiefs on Sunday, May 24, at 12:00 PM in the same venue.

Box Score:

Ateneo (73): De Luna – 16, Ebdane – 11, Baruwa – 10, Tyler – 9, Urbina – 5, Salgado – 5, Asoro – 4, Reyes – 4, Baltazar – 3, Nicolas – 3, Rota – 3, Lacson – 0, Tupas – 0

NU (76): Sapasap – 22, Miranda – 14. Reyes – 9, Locsin – 7, Durand – 6, Figueroa – 6, Navarro – 4, Borjal – 3, Perciano – 3, Gomez – 2

Quarter Scores:

Ateneo-NU: 24-20, 47-43, 60-54, 73-76

Group B Standings (W-L):

1. NU Bulldogs (7-0)
2. SBU Red Lions (5-2)
3. CEU Scorpions (4-3)
4. AU Chiefs (3-2)
5. EAC Generals (3-2)
6. ATENEO Blue Eagles (1-3)
7. UPHSD Altas (1-5)
8. LCCM Blue Royals (0-7)