Humblebola

by: Dr. Eriko C. dela Cruz

The Ateneo Blue Eagles took multiple monkeys off their backs after their opening day win against the FEU Tamaraws.

First, the uncertainty of Coach Tab Baldwin’s tenure with the team ended prior to the game as he inked a three season extension, guaranteeing the head coach would stay with Ateneo until season 91, or as he put it in the media room, “you’re all stuck with me till I’m 70.”

Second, Ateneo has finally won an opening day game for the first time since season 85, against the FEU Tamaraws. 

Third, this is the first win of Ateneo against FEU in two seasons, breaking a losing streak against the Tamaraws.

Is it safe to say that the Ateneo Blue Eagles, the team that went toe-to-toe with a juggernaut team the Finals of Season 79, the team that beat that same juggernaut team in Season 80, the team that went 16-0 in Season 82 and the same team that went to the Finals 6-straight times are back? Let’s look at it objectively.

After the disaster that was UAAP Season 87, the Blue Eagles underwent a major rebuild. There were a lot of bench players that were relegated to Glory Be (Ateneo’s Team B), to make room for the new recruits. While Ateneo builds the future in guys like Divine Adili, Alden Cainglet, and Lars Fjellvang, one-and-dones Kymani Ladi, Dom Escobar, and Jaden Lazo offer a much-needed immediate boost to their roster.

The Ateneo Blue Eagles had a better offseason leading to Season 88, as they snagged silver in the AsiaBasket College Campus Tour tournament, as well as a championship in Japan. Sources also shared good showings in closed-door tuneup games against the UST Growling Tigers and the Daegu KoGas Pegasus, SJ Belangel’s pro team. This is a stark contrast to the offseason for the past two seasons, where Ateneo could not even find two wins to strike together to create fire.

Against the FEU Tamaraws, the most telling statistic was the Blue Eagles scoring 21 points in the third quarter. In the past two seasons, the third quarter was the weakest period for the Blue Eagles. Granted, FEU scored 21 as well, but a net zero is better than a net negative. Luckily, Jared Bahay was able to take over when their backs were against the wall. One thing they still need to improve on is the inability to hold on to significant leads in crucial moments, which ultimately led to Jorick Bautista trying the game to send it to overtime.

The Blue Eagles’ rotation is still being figured out, and this speaks volumes about the depth of the team this season. As season 88 rolls on, and fresh legs would be a priority, more players would be integrated and step up for this team.

Even Coach Tab remarked that he was not happy with how they played in spite of the win. According to Tab, they won on talent, something Jared Bahay and and Kymani Ladi provided lots of in the clutch, but they have ways to go before they start winning because of good basketball tactics and execution.

So are the Ateneo Blue Eagles back? It’s still too early to say and a lot of signs are pointing to yes, but here is the scary thing:

This is not even their final form.