The University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons absorbed their first loss in the UAAP Season 86 men’s and women’s basketball tournaments after falling short in the “Battle of Katipunan” against the Ateneo Blue Eagles on Oct. 21 and 22.
Both teams now hold a 6-1 record at the end of round one, sharing top seeds with the National University (NU) Bulldogs in their respective campaigns.
First blow
The previously unblemished UP Men’s Basketball Team (UP MBT) succumbed to reigning titlists Ateneo Blue Eagles in overtime, 89-99, to end round one of the league at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Unlike their most recent overtime win against the FEU Tamaraws, the UP Fighting Maroons struggled to pull off a comeback win.
The opening salvo saw a back-and-forth affair between both teams, with Gerry Abadiano pitching all his 12 points in the first half.
Malick Diouf and Mark Belmonte ignited UP’s second quarter surge, scoring 7 straight points to snatch the lead, 25-22. However, Ateneo quickly clamped down on defense and scored 19 freebies for a 43-44 ADMU lead.
The foul-troubled Maroons struggled to capitalize on their turnovers, enabling the Blue Eagles to shoot 7 consecutive markers to end the third frame.
Trailing by 10 in the fourth quarter, team captain CJ Cansino pitched in a shot and a triple to narrow the deficit, 73-78.
This was followed by Francis Lopez’s personal 5-0 surge and Reyland Torres’ final lay-in with 1 minute, 10 seconds left on the clock to force the game into overtime at 80-all.
With neither team giving an inch, Ateneo rookie Mason Amos fired his own 5-0 run to break away from UP, mounting an offensive push for the Blue Eagles to dominate the deciding frame.
Cansino led the maroon shirts’ shorthanded efforts with 22 points and six rebounds. Meanwhile, reigning MVP Malick Diouf contributed another double-double performance of 13 points and 11 rebounds.
Despite coming out on top after the first round, UP MBT Head Coach Goldwin Monteverde noted that their 6-1 record should serve as a reminder to play more consistently and gather their composure ahead of the second round.
“Whether Ateneo naman or any other team, like I said, every game counts, so dapat lang naman talaga naming paghandaan ‘yun. And syempre, taking steps to work on whatever na kailangan naming baguhin as a team sa nangyari today.” Monteverde said.
History repeats itself
In the same heartbreaking fashion, the UP Women’s Basketball Team (UP WBT) put up a gallant stand but eventually fell short against the Ateneo Lady Eagles, 76-85, at the Adamson University Gym, on Oct. 21.
Just like in UAAP Season 70, a six-game winning streak by the Lady Maroons was snapped by the Blue Eagles at the end of the first round.
Achrissa Maw paced UP with a team-high 17 points and five rebounds as UP fell to a 6-1 record to share the top spot with the seven-time defending champions NU Lady Bulldogs.
Favour Onoh also stood tall with a double-double outing built from 16 markers and 18 boards.
State U found themselves struggling with a 17-point deficit early in the first quarter before exploding for a 30-point second quarter bomb, 45-46.
The blue-and-white jerseys, however, quickly restored order after their veteran guard Jhazmin Joson scored 12 points in the third quarter for a 5-point Ateneo cushion entering the final frame.
UP managed to slice a 9-point Ateneo lead to 71-77 midway through the fourth quarter despite missing the services of rookie sensation Louna Ozar who fouled out early in the fourth quarter with just 3 points to her name.
But the Maroon shirts’ comeback bid was put to waste after the hot-shooting Joson drilled two pivotal 3-pointers with Ateneo never looking back.
The graduating Joson spearheaded the Blue Eagles with a game-high 29 points with four assists and two steals.
The Fighting Maroons will try to go back to their winning ways as they enter round two of their basketball tournaments.
UP MBT QUARTER SCORES: 18-20, 43-44, 63-68, 80-80, 89-99
UP WBT QUARTER SCORES: 15-26, 45-46, 63-68, 76-85
