Black, Eagles seek historic three-peat

Reigning back-to-back champion Ateneo ran roughshod over UAAP Finals rival Far Eastern University, 72-49, in Game 1 of their best-of-three championship series Saturday. Will it be another walk in the park for a Blue Eagles squad looking for a historic three-peat? Ateneo coach Norman Black offers a guarded perspective. "We really don't talk about that too much," Black said. "We're just trying to win the championship. Of course, we've been here before, and a lot of our guys too, but our motivation is to go out and win, nothing more and nothing less."

The Blue Eagles shoot for their sixth title in the UAAP. They have a chance to score their first grandslam for the second time since joining the league in 1978. The Loyola-based squad had an opportunity to score a three-peat in 1989, but its chances were foiled by University of the East and traditional rival La Salle, which arranged a titular showdown. This time, though, momentum is definitely on the side of Black and his Blue Eagles. Black will try to become the second coach since the legendary Baby Dalupan to win a grandslam both in the pro and collegiate leagues. Dalupan was coach of the University of the East Warriors, who won a string of championships from 1965 to 1971 in the UAAP. In the NCAA, he steered the Blue Eagles to the NCAA crown in 1975 and 1976. ‘The Maestro’ also brought his winning ways to the Crispa Redmanizers, who completed a grandslam in 1976. Black doesn’t want to be overwhelmed by this great opportunity. Instead, he remains wary of the Tamaraws, who are expected to charge back strong in Game 2. "We know it's only one game, and it takes two games to win the championship series in the UAAP, so we're happy, we're excited, but we're not too overconfident at this point because we know FEU will bounce back," said Black. Ateneo got solid production from American guard Kirk Long, who topscored with 14 points, Justin Chua with 13 points and five rebounds, and Nico Salva who came off the bench with 10 points and nine boards. But Black unraveled his biggest surprise in 6-foot-7 rookie center JP Erram. The player who hardly saw action for much of the season came out with five blocks in just 13 minutes and sparked a key 17-2 windup for Ateneo at the end of the first period by shutting down his more experienced counterparts Aldrech Ramos and Reil Cervantes. "I was a bit scared at first, but when I came in and we we were leading, my confidence got boosted," said Erram. Knuttel, Tamaraws fight for survival Jens Knuttel, the Tamaraws’ backup guard and the team’s skipper, will try to keep hold of his team as they fight for survival in Game 2. “We want to show to everyone that we’re not patsies," said Knuttel. "We waited for this opportunity for how many years. We showed the effort all season long, but in the finals, we suddenly showed up lacking the effort." "It was not about the game plan, Ateneo's good system or their good plays. It was about our lack of effort." Knuttel added they got a tongue-lashing from the management after the disappointing loss. "As the management and coaching staff said, we were like gays playing on the court, and we’ve got to go out and prove that we're not," Knuttel added. Knuttel and the embattled Tamaraws played their most forgettable game of the season Saturday and they were humiliated by the high-flying Eagles, who came out with more energy and desire. Ramos and Cervantes, the team’s main frontliners, were outplayed by the duo of Chua and Erram, and the Tamaraws were held to their lowest output of the season – 49 points. - RCJ, GMANews.TV