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MANILA, Philippines (UPDATE) – When Ateneo coach Norman Black announced last week that their two wins against the Adamson Falcons in the elimination round “could have gone either way,” it was just a mere ploy.
 
And the Falcons, playing for the first time in the Final Four since 2006, fell into Black’s trap as the three-peat seeking Ateneo Blue Eagles marched into the Finals of the UAAP Season 73 men’s basketball with a swashbuckling 68-55 win before a delirious Sunday crowd at the Araneta Coliseum.
 
The Eagles used their vast playoffs experience and played with the confidence and swagger of a champion.  In stark contrast, the Falcons, who were confident coming into the game, regressed from their exceptional play in the elimination round and clearly lacked poise under pressure.
 
“We really prepared well against Adamson. We broke down everything we’ve seen them do the entire year and luckily for me, I have pretty intelligent players. They were able to grasp what we wanted to do defensively and execute it,” Black said.
 
The Eagles cut down the Falcons’ size as the smallest player – Emman Monfort – made the biggest difference in their march to the Finals opposite the league’s top team, the Far Eastern University (FEU) Tamaraws.
 
The 5’6’’ Monfort ably stepped up for backcourt mate Eric Salamat who was slowed down by fever last week.
 
Monfort, a recruit from Ateneo de Iloilo, displayed his huge heart that belied his small frame, scoring a game-high 22 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the floor.
 
He was perfect from the field in the opening period as the Eagles built a 16-5 lead that was never seriously threatened.

Spitfire guard
 
The ghastly rout extended the Eagles mastery over the Falcons to 28 games spanning 13 years.  Adamson last won against Ateneo way back on September 18, 1997 via a 54-52 squeaker when the team was still led by the duo of Eddie Laure and Gherome Ejercito.
 
“I wasn’t thinking about the match-ups. All I was thinking was how to play my role as the team’s point guard,” Monfort said.
 
The spitfire guard also collected 7 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals while Salamat, who only attended one practice session before the game due to fever, wound up with 7 points in just 19 minutes of play.
 
The Falcons bowed out this season with their highest win total [9-6] since the Kenneth Duremdes-led Falcons in 1993 posted an 11-3 record next to University of Santo Tomas’ 14-0 sweep.
 
The title showdown between Ateneo and FEU, which will start on Saturday at 4 p.m., will be aired live over ABS-CBN’s Channel 2 for the first time since the league’s tie-up with the network at the turn of the century. It will also be aired live on BALLS HD 167.

FEU reached the Finals last Thursday after defeating the No. 4 seed De La Salle University (DLSU) Green Archers, 69-59, in overtime.
 
FEU’s Cawaling won’t miss Game 1

Meanwhile, FEU forward JR Cawaling got the green light to play in Game 1 of the UAAP best-of-three Finals.

Cawaling, a Smart Gilas standout, escaped possible suspension after the UAAP Technical Committee led by league Commissioner Ato Badolato reviewed the tape of the FEU-DLSU Final Four match where he was ejected from the game.

Cawaling was tossed out after being assessed with an unsportsmanlike foul on DLSU guard Simon Atkins and a technical foul for a verbal tussle in the 4:27 mark of the second quarter with the score tied at 22-all.

“There was no intention to harm. Cawaling’s unsportsmanlike foul was meant to stop the fastbreak play, not to hurt the player,” explained Badolato.

In that play, Atkins was streaking forward and was about to throw a pass to a teammate near their basket when Cawaling suddenly stopped and bumped the La Salle guard, who fell down sprawling on the floor.

Atkins, who was hurt, immediately got up to confront Cawaling. Both players exchanged some words and pushed each other while the referees and their teammates tried to pacify them.  Cawaling was even seen on TV replays pushing the referee, who was trying to calm him down.

Both were assessed with technical fouls while Cawaling got an additional unsportsmanlike foul that led to his ejection.

“He is a key player in our rotation. ‘Nung nawala siya, I went to three-guard line up for most parts of the game,” said FEU coach Glenn Capacio, who emphasized the importance of Cawaling in his team’s quest for the elusive title since 2005


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MANILA, Philippines (1st UPDATE/CORRECTED) – The Ateneo de Manila University captured its third straight men’s basketball championship title after sweeping top seed Far Eastern University (FEU) in the University Athletic Association of Philippines (UAAP) Season 73 Finals.

The No. 2 seed Blue Eagles continued their domination of the best-of-three series, posting a 65-62 victory over the Tamaraws on Thursday at the Araneta Coliseum, before 17,215 spectators.

Ateneo scored a lopsided victory in Game 1, 72-49, last Saturday.

Ryan Buenafe’s three-point shot sealed the win for Ateneo, 64-59, with 22 seconds remaining.

Prior to that, FEU's Paul Sanga only made one out of three free throws, 61-59, after he was fouled beyond the 3-point line by Frank Golla.

After Buenafe's crucial triple, team mate Bacon Austria made one free throw. FEU's Reil Cervantes scored a triple with only 2 seconds left and it was too late. 

Buenafe was named the Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) after finishing with 23 points and 6 rebounds.

The three-peat championship is a first for the Blue Eagles in the UAAP, who have won a total of 5 titles in the collegiate league.

The Blue Eagles first achieved a three-peat in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) from 1931 to 1933. Ateneo won 14 titles in the NCAA.

Ateneo is the 5th UAAP member school to have won at least 3 straight titles, joining FEU (2003-2005), University of Santo Tomas (1946-1949, 1951-1953 and 1993-1996), University of the East (1965-1971) and De La Salle University (1998-2001).

The Jesuit-run school also made history this year as its men’s and juniors basketball teams scored the first double three-peat in UAAP and NCAA history. The Ateneo Blue Eaglets won their three-peat title last September 19.

Most difficult title win

For Ateneo mentor Norman Black, his team’s victory did not come easy.

“Definitely, this was the most difficult championship we’ve won in the last 3 years,” he told ABS-CBN Correspondent TJ Manotoc.

He then commended his cagers for a job well done.

“They really came up big tonight... Luckily for me, my players they have a big hearts. They really wanna win. [It] didn’t really matter if we already won 2 championships,” added Black.

 
UAAP Season 73 Finals Most Valuable Player Ryan Buenafe

Kirk Long told courtside reporter Jessica Mendoza that defense was the key to their three-peat triumph.

“I think defense wins championships and we’ve got the best coaching staff in the league,” he said. “Our team really came together and we pulled it off because of defense.”

Black and Nico Salva also mentioned that they proved their doubters wrong by believing in themselves and working hard.

Eric Salamat noted that the Blue Eagles had teamwork. “Lahat kami, leader eh... Para sa akin, lahat kami MVP,” he stated.

When asked about the possibility of scoring a four-peat next season, Black said he wants to enjoy this season’s championship first. But he revealed that they have a strong recruiting class next year.

But Ateneo’s representative to the UAAP board, Ricky Palou, was more bold in his declaration: “We’re going for a fourth championship next year. That’s all I can say.”

Slow recovery

The Tamaraws led by 9 at the end of the first quarter, but Ateneo began a slow recovery in the second.

The Tamaraws forced a 7-2 rally at the onset of the third with Cervantes and Sanga again scorching the hoops.

However, Buenafe’s consistent attack inside the paint helped bring down FEU’s lead midway the third frame.

FEU coach Glenn Capacio was absent from the bench in the second half as he remained in the locker room due to high blood pressure.

Emman Monfort finally tipped the favor to Ateneo’s side by following up a miss on the 4:19 mark of the third quarter to push the Eagles ahead, 43-42.

Aldrech Ramos’ three-point play, followed by Anthony Bringas and JR Cawaling’s trip to the stripes, tied the game 46-all.

But Jason Escueta’s basket off Salamat’s assist brought the lead back to Ateneo, 48-46.

Monfort later brought the scores to 50-46. However, Cervantes and Ramos pushed FEU within 2 points near the end of the third frame.

 
Bert Flores receives the 1st runner-up trophy for the FEU Tamaraws.

Newfound confidence

In contrast to the first game, FEU played with newfound confidence as it grabbed the lead at half-time, 31-30, against Ateneo.

The Tamaraws, who took the first quarter lead, 22-13, rode on their superb three-point shooting to make up for their poor performance from beyond the arc in Game 1.

Ateneo inched closer to the Tamaraws in the second quarter with a 17-9 scoring run. It grabbed the lead for the first time, 27-26, with 2:22 remaining.

But the Tamaraws were undeterred as they regained the lead, 31-28, before Ateneo trimmed their advantage by one, 31-30.

FEU’s half-time field goal shooting percentage was 44% while Ateneo’s was 27%. The Morayta-based team made 3 out of 6 free throws while the Katipunan-based squad made 10 out of 16 free throws.

The Tamaraws had 26 rebounds and 9 turnovers while Ateneo had 17 rebounds and no turnovers in the first half.

Early in the game, Sanga and bigman Cervantes rained triples against Ateneo’s defense, which struggled against FEU’s offensive might. FEU’s assault led to a 12-4 run midway the first quarter.

Starting for Ateneo were Chua, Buenafe, Golla, Long and Monfort. FEU's Starting 5 were Cervantes, Sanga, Ramos, Christopher Exciminiano and RR Garcia.

Despite the loss, FEU still holds the record for having the most number of UAAP men’s basketball titles—19.

Garcia named MVP

Before the game, the UAAP handed out the special awards, mostly to FEU players.

Not a single Ateneo player, however, was recognized during the UAAP awarding ceremony held before Game 2.

Garc was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) for averaging 16.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists in Season 73.

He is the first point guard since former Tamaraw Johnny Abarrientos to be named MVP nearly two decades ago.

Joining Garcia in the UAAP Mythical Five are FEU’s Ramos, Paul Lee (University of the East), Emmanuel Mbe (National University) and Kenneth Acibar (University of the East).

FEU’s Terrence Romeo was hailed as Rookie of the Year


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