by MigiUnder the bright lights of the Philsports Arena, hoops fans witnessed an outpouring of affection, the further extolling of those clad in Blue, and in Green.
Behind the solid exploits of Ben Fernandez, and Mark Barroca, the FEU Tamaraws won in a humdinger of a contest against the highly touted UE Red Warriors, 71-69, in the second game of the UAAP Season 71's recent Saturday showcase. Mental lapses towards the end game assisted in the Morayta boys' reaping some measure of inspiration just days removed from one of the more unfortunate incidents involving a top amaetur cager in recent history.
The UE Red Warriors' poor free throw shooting, coupled with a reputation for folding down the stretch, has buried deep within a 3-3 hole, good enough for only 4th place in an 8 horse race (a full game above 2-4 Adamson).
Earlier in the day, the De La Salle Green Archers dismantled hapless hosts the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons, 82-60. The Maroons were led by Woody Co's 22 points, 19 of which, he scored in the second period. The Archers were paced by James Mangahas' 16 markers, and Rico Maierhoffer's 14. La Salle's defense totally threw off the Maroons' shooters, who only shot 32% from behind the arc and 33% overall. UP lefty shooter Martin Reyes, who has averaged 10.2 points per game this season, managed only 4 points on 1-10 shooting. A bright spot for the Maroons was the play of Migs De Asis, who, entering the contest, had averaged only 6 minutes a game. De Asis scored 9 points and dished out 3 assists in 10 minutes of play, showing flashes of brilliance that had many a UP follower optimistic about the his and the squad's future. La Salle now holds solo 2nd place with a 5-1 record, while the Maroons have fallen to 7th place overall with a 1-5 clip.
In today's first game, the Ateneo Blue Eagles continued running roughshod over the UAAP competition with a 74-62 drubbing of the National University Bulldogs. Behind Nonoy Baclao's superb shotblocking, Chris Tiu's torrid shooting, and the slashing ways of Eric Salamat and Jai Reyes, the Eagles leapt to a 21-16 first quarter advantage after being down 11-6 early in the game. From there, Ateneo never looked back. Edwin Asoro and Jessey Garcia provided NU with an inside-outside punch, but ill-advised decisions and on offense and defense, coupled with a lack of poise against the 3-2 zone, inevitably led to the Bulldogs' downfall.
So what does this all mean?
-The Archers are riding a 5 game winning streak. In the 5 games they've won, it's seemed that La Salle has come at teams with an attack that has been anchored by exceptional spacing, solid perimeter play, and stifling defense. The Green side's wing players like Malabes, Barua, Chandumal, Bagatsing, and Casio have terrorized opponents with their zone busting shooting and run and gun exploits. Rico Maierhoffer's speed and athleticism has given defenders hell, especially in transition. If I know La Salle, Coach Franz hasn't dealt all his cards just yet, and that does not bode well for the rest of the league. Despite having won 5 in a row, the Archers still seem to be pacing themselves. The best seems to still be on the horizon for this team raring to defend its crown.
-It would be foolhardy to underestimate the FEU Tamaraws at this point. Despite having lost leading scorer Mac Baracael, FEU is still awash with talented wingmen in Ben Fernandez, JR Cawaling, and Marlon Adolfo. Sometimes, wounded beasts are those who fight the fiercest. Should FEU make the Final Four, whoever is slated to face them is in for a lot of headaches. FEU is long, and athletic, and outstanding on transition. FEU is the sort of defensive team that gives opponents fits because of their youth and end to end footspeed. And lo and behold, who knew that FEU had a little bit of Hans Thiele in them in the form of Robert Kave? Boom Gonzales said it best when said that the two were "mirror images" of one another. A block for a block, a layup for a layup. Kave's got more of a jump shot, though.
-The Ateneo Blue Eagles have proven, over the 5 games that they've won in Season 71, that they can take opponents down in a bevy of ways. 2-1-1 zone, say you? Try Chris Tiu or Kirk Long killing you with a long three. Is a high zone what you like to do? Look out for Rabeh or Jobe posting up on you for an easy layup or a jump hook. I never thought I'd say this, but, Ateneo seems to be the frontrunner as the team to dethrone the De La Salle Green Archers. Will they lose steam in Round 2? Will they sweep the elimination round, ala-UE circa 2007, and falter in the end? Only time will tell, yes, but based on what we've seen thus far, one would have to surmise that play for play, player for player, from top to bottom, the Ateneo Blue Eagles seem to be the squad to beat for UAAP 2008.
*Funny Nugget, Funny Nugget: During today's NU-Ateneo tiff, Eagles' guard Ryan Buenafe was caught staring for what seemed like an eternity at part of the ringside area in the Philsports arena. Maybe the rookie was just winded after a hard game, but whatever the reason, it did look funny, and did merit some thought as to what Buenafe had on his mind, or, why he was caught so deep in thought. Ateneo's 5-0, and consequently, the former San Beda Red Cub's been a huge part of his team's success thus far. Now there's something that someone who is less than a rocket scientist, or, a philosoph, can not only understand, but utterly appreciate.
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