NU vs. FEU Round One

The Giant Killers
NU 69 vs. FEU 61
by rick olivares

The last time the National University Bulldogs walked off a UAAP court a winner was when they scored a whopper of an upset over the Ateneo Blue Eagles in Season 70.

The last time the NU Bulldogs were upset was their first game of the season and it was against the University of the Philippines Maroons.

If you ask many a basketball coach, they will say that NU has a very talented team. Emphasis on talented. They’ve had the misfortune of many a third quarter power failure after another. Even worse, it has been rare when the team’s two offensive juggernauts – Edwin Asoro and Jonathan Jahnke have been on the same page in terms of a good game.

Heading into the final match of the first round of Season 71, the Bulldogs still retained a modicum of hope that they actually win and hope it will galvanize them towards a better second round showing.

But standing in their way were the dangerous Far Eastern University Tamaraws. Fresh from their upset of erstwhile undefeated Ateneo De Manila, the Tams were riding high on an emotional lift provided by the still unexplained slay try on teammate Marnel Baracael. They mowed down highly fancied UE and stopped Ateneo cold in their match’s final minutes.

“We have to take them out of the fight early,” said Bulldogs mentor Manny Dandan. The long-time team coach knew he couldn’t afford to make the same mistake Ateneo did when instead of going to the kill early on, they went small in a bizarre match-up that allowed FEU to stay within striking distance.

Furthermore the Bulldogs seized an opportunity that the Blue Eagles squandered. The Tamaraws are thin upfront and like UST, they have to resort to gang rebounding. With Baracael out, they needed Reil Cervantes and Aldrech Ramos to reprise their stellar game versus Ateneo. Sure Rabeh Al-Hussaini pulverized them but they stopped everyone else.

NU’s athletic frontline stuck it inside early and all game long, center Jewel Ponferrada scored 16 points and added 6 rebounds and perhaps more importantly shut the door on the Tams’ inside game with 4 blocked shots. Raymond Aguilar added 10 points and 10 boards while Asoro knocked down 14 points and hauled down 10 rebounds.

The glaring statistic among the three frontcourt players is that all three of them shot better than 50% with Ponferrada making 85% of his shots. The power game gave NU a 43-38 advantage on the boards and 13 second chance points (to FEU’s 4).

While FEU Coach Glenn Capacio’s boys aren’t known for their alligator pit toughness, what makes the Morayta squad wholly dangerous are their plethora of swingmen who can rifle it in from the outside like three-point shots and jumpers were going out of style. They are like UST minus Jervy Cruz. They, in some way, are like NU albeit a more talented line-up.

But no one ever won a game on paper.

The Bulldogs’ smallish guards smothered FEU’s outside shooters leaving them with an atrocious 3-21 from trey land.

Having checked two key components of winning any game – rebounding and defense – NU bucked a halftime deficit and actually won the third quarter. And in the pay-off quarter, they withstood a furious Tamaraws rally that was doused with cold water by Jay Jahnke who played the fireman’s role.

Basketball analysts have rated Jahnke to be one of the league’s sterling guards but with him unable to get on track, the team was rudderless. Jerome Tungcul and Michael Luy have shown that they could be worthy heirs to the 1-spot after this season, but none so far have the experience or the big game heroics of Jahnke who killed Ateneo last year with his long bombs and excellent quarterbacking in the clutch.

While the Olongapo-native missed his two shots from close range, he hit three of four free throws and went 4-8 from three-point range. The biggest shot came with 34 seconds left to give NU a 65-61 lead. In a stunning reverse from their first game where the Ateneo and La Salle crowds were cheering UP on (after all, they went winless last season), the galleries of ADMU and UST were on their feet cheering on the Bulldogs. And after a stop on the defensive end, the Bulldogs came away with another giant-killing win at 69-61 for their first win of the season.

It was quite a sight... Janhke leapt into the arms of the much taller Aguilar. Coach Manny Dandan and his bench players all huddled with their hands aloft signifying win number one. Assistant Coach Jeff Napa, who was a part of the last NU team to make the Final Four in 2002, clapped hard and slapped his players' backs.

It was a happy locker room scene after that with the team settling down for prayer before any celebration. Team officials pointed out that their strong second half showing won the game for them. “We didn’t give up. We fought all the way,” smiled Hans Sy, the team’s patron. The players nodded in agreement knowing that for them to fulfill any play-off dreams, they’ll have to play the games of their lives.

Ponferrada, who was wiping the sweat from his brow was beaming from ear to ear. After his high-flying slam dunk on UP in their opening game, he was whistled for a technical for hanging on to the rim. That technical allowed UP to get some points on the board while retaining ball possession. NU never recovered from that and went on a demoralizing skid.

“Sometimes it’s not just about winning but showing what you’re really made of,” summed up Jahnke as the rest of the team munched on doughnuts and went for a shower. “What we’re trying to do is start a winning tradition in NU. Sana ‘eto na ang start.”