by Milo
Is there an Atenean so far in the top 10 of point production averages in season 69? 3-pointers made? How about top 5 in blocks? Steals? Rebounds?
If you answered, “Yes” because the Ateneo Blue Eagles are in first place, so surely they must have at least one or two in the ranks, then I regret to inform you that you are wrong.
Really interesting numbers.
Kramer leads the points and rebounds with 14.3 and 9 for the Blue Eagles. Chris Tiu leads in 3-points made with 1 a game. Martin QUimson leads in blocks with 0.5 in 2 games, and JC Intal heads the steals department with 1 for the Ateneans.
Comparing these stats to the league leaders, they seem puny. The master in points and steals is UP Maroons’ star player, Marvin Cruz with 22.7 and 2.7. UP’s Migs de Asis heads the 3-point department with 4.3 treys per game. As for rebounds, NU Bulldogs’ Edwin Asoro leads the pack with an average of 13 a game. Rookie sensation Jervy Cruz of the UST Tigers leads the blocks statistic with 2.3.
Why are they winning?
It’s really difficult to tell. They won a squeaker of a game against Adamson, and they even had a difficult time against NU. The Blue Eagles haven’t shown complete dominance yet in a game this season 69.
Let’s look at the roster.
Coach: Norman Black
Centers: Ford Arao, Rabeh Al-Hussaini, Martin Quimson,
Forwards: Ken Barracoso, JC Intal, Zion Laterre, Douglas Kramer, Johan Uichico
Guards: Macky Escalona, Yuri Escueta, Eman Monfort, Jai Reyes, Eric Salamat, Chris Tiu
By watching their performances and looking through the roster, I can surmise some of the things that can explain why they are winning.
Coach – It is Norman Black’s second year of coaching the Ateneo Blue Eagles. This time around, the Blue Eagles have grown accustomed to the style, the flow, the plays and strategies Norman Black has for them. Norman also has the experience to know now what works, and what doesn’t for the current line-up of the Blue Eagles.
Subtractions / Experience – Star point guards LA Tenorio and Magnum Membrere, the “Legend” Badjie Del Rosario, rookie Eman Nazareno, and USA-bound Japeth Aguilar may be gone from the team for one reason or another, but the Blue Eagle core more or less remains intact this time around. The Blue Eagles lost three key players, Tenorio, Membrere and Aguilar from last year but these current line-up has enough experience to fill in those gaps. They only have two first-time UAAP cagers in their line-up, Monfort and Salamat. Everyone else has tasted the pace and pressure of the UAAP experience. There might not be a real star per se, but between their leaders in Kramer, Intal and Escalona, you have a very formidable triumvirate that can lead the Eagles to the promised land. This experience too has helped them close out those games in the fourth quarter, something that FEU is lacking this year as I noted in my earlier article.
Height/Speed combo – Despite the departure of shot blocker Japeth Aguilar, the Ateneo Blue Eagles remain as one of the tallest line-ups in Season 69. With Al-Hussaini at 6′7″, Arao and Quimson at 6′5″, and Intal and Kramer at 6′3″, they give a distinct height advantage over their counterparts in the UAAP. This height advantage more or less influences the way their opponents shoot the ball. After all, who wants to get blocked? It’s a major ego and confidence sapper. Even with all the height, these big men are not slowpokes, common to tall humans, either. Plus, with their new backcourt athletes and strategy, they move the ball faster than before. Escalona, Escueta, Reyes, Salamat and Tiu can all bring down the ball and distribute it with ease so anyone among them can initiate plays. Their three guard line-up has done wonders in their battle against UP and Adamson. They all can shoot the three ball decently if needed. I’m sure the Falcons are still reeling from the three-point bomb Chris Tiu let loose.
Momentum – This roster has ben playing some tune-up games since February, and they only have lost one game so far. Their confidence is high, and with their first three games tallied under the win column, they have all their engines revved up to steamroll the competition.
Assists – In their three games so far, the Ateneans have “outassisted” their opponents. Sharing the ball has been key in their wins. 16-9 against NU, 22-12 against UP and lookie, only 13-10 against Adamson, highlighting their tough game against the Falcons.
Distributed point production – As if to showcase that everyone can score, the Blue Eagles have their point production distributed across the entire team. There is no instance yet in this team that a player would score 30 and the second highest would only net 6, much like what Kobe Bryant does for the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA. Against NU, their scoring line was 17-11-11-9-9-6-4-3-2-2-1. Against UP, it was 20-17-13-8-8-8-8-7-4-3-2. And in Adamson, it was 14-13-10-9-8-7-6-4-2.
The Blue Eagles still have a tough road ahead. They still have yet to face the perennial Final Four teams FEU, UE, and often fifth-place UST. It is in these games that they will surely be tested to the core. They have to shake off the horrors of the past when they face UE, the team that dealt them their sole loss this year.
If the Ateneans can maintain these current positive traits in the succeeding games, then they might actually win it all this year. The conditions are right (No perennial strongman La Salle, no team emerging as an unstoppable force yet), the experience is there, the luck is on their side and everything is laid out in front of them.
This is the perfect time for the Eagles to capture the gold once more.
