Looking at Ateneo’s loss to La Salle

Looking at Ateneo’s loss to La Salle

by rick olivares

The De La Salle Green Archers defeated the Ateneo Blue Eagles, 79-76 by blanking the latter in the last 2:25 to ensure a Final Four instead of Ateneo going straight to the Finals.

For La Salle, it shows Ateneo that they aren’t as invincible as they think. Two, it re-affirms their belief that they are still the top dogs in the league until taken down. It helps give Kib Montalbo much needed confidence – as if he needed it – heading into the UAAP’s second season. It also does the same for Abu Tratter who for the most part this season was the forgotten man with Leonard Santillan taking over his starting slot with aplomb.

For Ateneo, there is much to learn.

There are a couple of ways you can look at the loss – one, it does keep you active with no particular extended rest that could result in rust. Two, the streak ended and the pressure of keeping it going has been lifted. Three, you adjust from this loss.

You have to give the Green Archers credit for their defensive stops in the final 2:25 as Ateneo suddenly became uncharacteristically shaky in the crunch time. They also shot themselves in the foot with shocking turnovers.

Let’s hold that thought so we can go back at the start.

Both teams threw double teams at certain players.

Ateneo threw a double team at Ben Mbala while La Salle had two players on Matt Nieto to give up the ball.

Both strategies worked up to certain points but Mbala ultimately came out on to as he got the job done on both ends of the court and in the crunch. What a stat line – 28 points, 19 rebounds, 6 steals and 6 blocks (versus 5 turnovers).

La Salle’s press mostly did not work. What worked for them was the unconventional lineup that worked in the second period for a stretch. At one point, La Salle had Ben Mbala, Abu Tratter, and Justine Baltazar on the floor. It worked for a bit as Thirdy Ravena was rather careless in bringing up the ball. Imagine that. He got picked off twice by Mbala. Come on.

I am rather surprised they didn’t expect this. La Salle used that strategy against UP and UE in this second round.

Ateneo adjusted come the third period killing that tall line-up with Mbala going out for the aggressive show. Isaac Go and a few others scored inside giving La Salle fits. What they did later on was put Tratter out and hope that his athleticism and wingspan could trouble Ateneo’s shooters while Mbala stayed inside the lane.

In the first period, Santillan led the hit parade after which he turned it over to Mbala for the second period scoring. Ricci Rivero was shut down in the meantime.

Ateneo got its points from Matt Nieto and Isaac Go but Thirdy, Aaron Black, Anton Asisitio (who hasn’t played well in a while now), and Mike Nieto looked out of focus. Ravena got going in the second half but Mike Nieto never got going. Furthermore, Chibueze Ikeh and Vince Tolentino were in foul trouble.

To be honest, I am kind of surprised that Tyler Tio has not seen one second of action in both Ateneo-La Salle matches. I am not convinced of Jolo Mendoza or Gian Mamuyac’s ball handling skills (they struggle when bringing it up all the way from the backcourt). Just my thought but Ateneo could use Tyler come the next few games. He just needs to dribble less and make quicker decisions. I understand it is all part of the learning curve this being his first season.

I am sure though there is a reason why he is being held back. Trust the Ateneo coaching staff after all, they’ve done a great job these past two campaigns.

Now there was a stretch where Ateneo coach Tab Baldwin went with Gian Mamuyac, Kris Porter, and Jolo Mendoza in the fourth period and they hiked the lead to 66-54. Under withering assault from the defending champs, Ateneo still held firm, although the lead was sliced to six, 71-65, with 5:29 to play.

With 2:25, Ateneo led, 76-69, then Thirdy committed an offensive foul, Matt Nieto’s lazy pass was picked off by Rivero. And Go was whistled for traveling.

Was the final play good? Sure, it was. Isaac just missed. If he made it, Baldwin would once more be hailed as a genius (as if he isn't).

What La Salle got right was they shackled Matt Nieto in the fourth period where he has burned opponents. Matt had one attempt (he missed) and one rebound. That’s it. Not counting the costly turnover. By game’s end, La Salle scored six turnover points in the fourth period to Ateneo’s two. That was the difference right there.

In contrast, La Salle’s top two players in crunch time got going – Ricci Rivero had 12 points in the fourth while Mbala added 7.

I have always postulated --- even going back to last season – if Ateneo wants to take the title, Ikeh needs to play well. The Big Fella has been all right this season. His finest since his rookie year of Season 77. But he was in foul trouble during the game.

One can make the case for the officiating but both sides saw bum calls. And in spite of that, Ateneo still had a chance to win but they botched it.

Having said all of that, you have to like how Raffy Verano, giving up some height, gamely battled on. Ditto with Vince Tolentino in limited minutes. Even Kris Porter, usually overmatched, gave an okay account of himself.

What do the Blue Eagles need to do? They need to get Asistio untracked. They need Mike Nieto chipping in quality minutes. And Ravena needs recognize that La Salle knows what he is going to do when he spins in that lane (actually last year pa nila alam) and when he needs to pick up the pace.

It’s a tough loss but the team should take comfort that sweeps are never Ateneo’s best suit in the UAAP. Ateneo ended La Salle’s dreams of an undefeated season last year by shocking them in the second round. The Green Archers paid the favor. Now the onus is on the Blue Eagles to adjust and see off FEU, first.

As for La Salle, they are in familiar territory in the Final Four. The question is… how much has Adamson grown in the last year? Can they bring it against La Salle?

Four points to take from Ateneo’s win over UP

Four points to take from Ateneo’s win over UP

by rick olivares

The final score of 96-82 doesn’t begin to tell the whole story. It was a close match. Although Ateneo wrested the lead around halfway through the fourth period, it was only in the last two minutes where they seized control of the game.

You have to give a lot of credit to UP for coming out with fire and purpose. They played hard and even wanted the ball a bit more than the slower Blue Eagles. Ateneo showed their nerve and verve during crunch time as they took their 13^th win in as many matches.

The Fighting Maroons fell to 5-8 with their final match of the second round against NU taking on greater importance (for both sides actually).

Here are six points to take from the game.

Live by the outside shot; die by the outside shot.

When the Fighting Maroons are on fire they can be awesome to watch. Unfortunately, they seem to jack up a heavy volume of treys. They have taken 344 attempts from LaLa Land. That’s 6 more than UE and 10 more than La Salle.

Unfortunately, for them, they are shooting only 29% from that range. Fifth-best in the league or fourth worst depending on how you look at it.

When they defeated La Salle in the first round, they hoisted 35 shots from three-point range making 16. In the return encounter in the second round, they attempted 32 times in a loss.

Obviously, it is a big part of their offense. Unfortunately, for them, the law of averages caught up with UP. Against the Blue Eagles, they shot a blistering 50% from three-point range in the first half (8-16), then 3-15 in the second (20%).

When they stopped making their shots, they began to force the issue resulting in even more misses. But Ateneo just tightened up their defense beginning the fourth period and more so in the final five minutes of play.

On the other hand, Ateneo was 4-9 in the second half with their flurry including two deadeye treys from Isaac Go coming late that broke the game wide open.

Thirdy Ravena played great defense on Paul Desiderio.

Ravena (and Mike Nieto when the former was on the bench getting a rest) played great defense on Paul Desiderio who scored only 3 points in the second half. Ravena denied him possession and good looks at the basket. You could see the frustration on Desiderio's face especially late in the game when the ball wasn't going to him with the shot clock winding down.

With Desiderio not scoring, the Blue Eagles then put the clamps late in the game with two blocks and two steals. They really broke away late in the game.

As for Ravena, despite a poor shooting day, his stat line was pretty good – 10 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists, 4 steals, and 1 block versus 4 turnovers.

Matt Nieto has been spectacular for Ateneo.

Remember Edward Woodward’s TV show, The Equalizer? Well, Nieto is close. He’s actually the stabilizer. The offense is steady when he’s quarterbacking and the engine runs close to perfect. Plus, he hits big shots.

Look at those free throws and compare his form to last year’s form. Look at the balance and where he gets the power and accuracy in his shot. What a transformation!

What an incredible job by the bench.

That was quite a lift gsiven by Ateneo’s bench that collectively poured in 49 points to the 29 of the Fighting Maroons. Now to be particular, Gian Mamuyac who tallied 13 points and 2 rebounds in close to 18 minutes of play; Isaac Go also finished with 13 points and 4 boards; and Mike Nieto who chipped in 9 points. All of them were huge especially down the stretch when they had to repel a last charge by UP.

All season long, their selfless team play has gotten them out of jams and propelled them to wins. Even if Tyler Tio and Aaron Black didn’t score, they at least chipped in a rebound each.

And you really have to appreciate their nerves of steel. To wit, it was almost a bad day for Vince Tolentino who had a rough first half. But late in the game, he was solid on both ends of the court. Ditto for Raffy Verano had a couple of shocking errors again but the great thing about this kid, is how he comes back. It is the same for Tolentino. It’s not how you start but how you finish.

As for the UP Fighting Maroons, they have a very good young core who will use this season and learn much from it. The Gomez Di Liaño brothers have blown hot and cold too but man, they should really be good by next season. They are only losing three players but think of next year’s additions? Wow. But that’s a few months away (until the summer tourneys). Right now, they still have a chance to advance. It’s not going to be easy though.

The surprising but exciting NBA East

The surprising but exciting NBA East

by rick olivares

Nine to 10 matches in, the Eastern Conference of the NBA has been surprising. The Cleveland Cavaliers who people thought would steamroll over the entire league are sputtering. The Washington Wizards of who great things are expected now have also been somewhat off.

Let’s take a look at three teams – the Boston Celtics, the Detroit Pistons, and the Orlando Magic who all currently lead their respective divisions -- the Atlantic, Central, and Southeast.

I’d like to think this is the start of an Eastern Conference revival where more than two squads can compete with the West. It’s early but there’s plenty to smile about.

Boston (7-2)

The Boston Celtics pace the Atlantic Division with a 7-2 record are surprising given the season-ending injury to Gordon Hayward. They lost their first two matches of the campaign then have bounced back with seven straight wins including some impressive road triumphs over Milwaukee, San Antonio, and Oklahoma.

If you ask me, those wins, and the streak, are a statement from this team that had all sorts of question marks before season’s tip-off. If this isn’t a bounce back, then I do not know what is.

What makes that win over Oklahoma impressive is they struggled in the first half and looked like their streak would end. But Al Horford and Kyrie Irving took over in the second half.

I don’t even think this team has hit its stride. They are winning because of their grind-it-out defensive and willingness to scrap. Thus far, they are tops in defense. I haven’t seen the stats but they sure hustle for their points.

Boston is 23^rd right now on offense. Wait until they really get going then let’s see where they go. But then again, defense wins championships.

Aside from the surprising talent on its roster, it helps that the team has plenty of motivation. There’s Kyrie Irving who wants to show what he can do when not playing alongside the world’s best player, the leftovers after general manager Danny Ainge “tinkered” with his team, and the injury to Hayward.

It’s still too early to tell how and where the Celtics will end up as it is a long season but they have the right ingredients to make a deep play-off run.

Irving and Horford could be this team’s Stockton-to-Malone. What a two-man game they play when they are on.

And look at this flexible line-up. If Kiwi center Aron Baynes goes to the bench, head coach Brad Stevens slides Horford to the five-spot with Marcus Morris going to the four. That’s a lot of mobility right there. And wait until Morris gets into more game shape.

As for Baynes, you have to like his aggressiveness. He gets dunked on but it doesn’t faze him one bit. He goes right back at his opponent with a dunk of his own or even a big outside shot.

Marcus Smart and Terry Rozier will make a case for Sixth Man of the Year.

Detroit (7-3)

They have the second best record in the East behind Boston. And yet, players like Reggie Jackson and center Andre Drummond have been the subject of trade rumors this early.

The Detroit front office has squelched the whispers but when do they really admit to them? At this point, I am not sure if trading Jackson or even Drummond would be in this team’s best interest. They are off to a good start. Ugly wins but that’s Detroit ball if you will.

Their acquisition of Avery Bradley (from Boston for Marcus Morris) made this team better because they added an outside threat. Bradley gives this team some scoring sock as they struggled to put points on the board last season.

Some believe the start to be a fluke especially after they lost at home to the Philadelphia 76ers (er, that is a good team so I do not know why people are upset) and to the Los Angeles Lakers (that is still groping for form). Hey, the season is young. The pre-season is different from the actual season.

However, you have to look at the bright side – they defeated in succession Minnesota at home then the erstwhile undefeated LA Clippers and Golden State on the road! They have potential. You just have to be patient.

Orlando (6-3)

You couldn’t have pulled this out of a magician’s hat. The young Orlando Magic have been an exciting ball club to watch. While not exactly the Golden State Warriors in offensive proficiency, they have been blistering hot from the field while playing efficient ball.

They have shot well so far behind Aaron Gordon, DJ Augustin, and Nikola Vucevic. Evan Fournier, Jonathon Simmons, Marreese Speights, and Jonathan Isaac have also done well. How about Gordon and Vucevic bombing away from the frontcourt!

People are waiting for the Magic to crash because they have been too good to be true (so say the naysayers). But you cannot discount the wins over Cleveland, San Antonio, New Orleans, and Memphis.

Thus far, this Orlando team reminds me of Mike D’Antoni’s Phoenix Suns (sans the stars).

It has been a crazy NBA season so far. But I like.

Sign of the times: Sports figures and fan abuse

This was from about two weeks ago.