Ateneo wins 3 Peat againts FEU

Ateneo 65 - FEU 62

Ryan Buenafe - Player of the Game

MANILA, Philippines (1st UPDATE) – 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.

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.

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.

Garcia 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 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