Ateneo nips FEU to complete Grand Slam

Ateneo de Manila University (AdMU) coach Norman Black brought his Grand Slam touch to the UAAP men's basketball tournament as he steered the Blue Eagles to a third consecutive crown in Season 73.

Black, who piloted the San Miguel Beermen to a three-peat in the PBA in 1989, accomplished his second Triple Crown after the Blue Eagles upended the top-ranked Far Eastern University (FEU) Tamaraws, 65-62, in the second game of their best-of three finals. FEU had beaten Ateneo twice in the regular season, only to fall twice in succession to the Blue Eagles in the championship round. "This is the most difficult championship that we've won. It was a total team effort. Thank you to the Ateneo community for sticking with us," said Black, who now joins the ranks of former collegiate coaches Franz Pumaren of La Salle, Aric del Rosario of UST, and the legendary Baby Dalupan of UE in winning three consecutive UAAP crowns. While Black mapped out Ateneo’s plays in the huddle, it was Ryan Buenafe who did most of the damage on the court. Buenafe, who struggled offensively this season, delivered the knockout punch in the payoff period as he led the Katipunan-based squad in completing the two-game finals sweep. The 6-foot-2 shooting forward hit a fade-away jumper then knocked in a cold-blooded three-pointer in the crucial final minute of the match to give Ateneo a 64-59 cushion. After FEU's Paul Sanga made only one of three free throws, the Blue Eagles held a slim 61-59 lead when Buenafe drained a backbreaking triple against the defense of FEU rookie Bryan Cruz with 22 seconds left. Buenafe registered 23 points, six rebounds and one assist as his game-long brilliance earned him the Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) honors. It was sweet redemption for Buenafe, who entered the year with weight problems that began during the preseason tournaments held in the summer. In fact, he was singled out as one of those who lacked defensive intensity after a loss to traditional rival De La Salle University. Buenafe scored just two points in the series opener, but guaranteed Black he would play all out in Game 2, and he didn't disappoint his mentor. "He's a winner and he knows when the lights go on and he really stepped up for us in this game," Black said. "I told coach (Norman) that it's time for me to perform big because I haven't done a lot during the season and it's my opportunity to give something back to him," said Buenafe. Buenafe had 10 points in the fourth quarter, including nine straight at one point.
For the latest Philippine news stories and videos, visit GMANews.TV With FEU claiming its last lead at 57-56 with five minutes to go, the 2008 Rookie of the Year began his heroics. As the Tamaraws missed shot after shot, Buenafe helped Ateneo regain the lead and pad it for a safer margin. Before his booming triple, he earlier faked JR Cawaling inside, scoring unmolested underneath to extend the Eagles' lead to 61-56 with 2:15 to go. Emman Monfort had 10 points, five rebounds and three assists for the Eagles, who romped off with their sixth title overall since joining the UAAP in 1978, with the last four accomplished in the last nine years. They did it in front of 17,215 frenzied fans that included former president Joseph Estrada and Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona. It was the seventh three-peat in UAAP history. Those who did it before the Eagles were UST (1947-49, 1951-53 and 1993-96), UE (1965-71), FEU (1979-81 and 2003-05) and La Salle (1998-01). Ateneo won despite shooting 32 percent from the field and getting outrebounded, 46-36. FEU, fired up after a horrible 72-49 Game 1 loss, came up firing as Paul Sanga hit nine points, all coming from the three-point range, and the Tamaraws zoomed to a 22-13 lead at the end of the first quarter. FEU even enjoyed an 11-point spread, 24-13, early in the second period. But the Tamaraws failed to hold on to the lead and settled for a 31-30 halftime advantage. Soon, they lost coach Glenn Capacio when his blood pressure rose, forcing him to go to Medical City for observation. Without Capacio, it was the turn of the assistant coaches led by Louie Gonzales, Richie Ticzon, and even former FEU mentor Bert Flores to handle the Tamaraws. Despite trailing for most of the third period, the Tams kept themselves in the game. "In Game 1, we were completely overwhelmed in playing in the finals. We were much better this time around, but still, it was the championship experience of Ateneo that we couldn't overcome," said FEU athletic director Mark Molina. Molina and team manager Anton Montinola were quite impressed with the Eagles, who turned the ball over just five times, all of which came in the fourth quarter. Cervantes topscored for FEU with 15 points while adding 10 rebounds in 29 minutes, Sanga added 13 points on 3-of-5 shooting from downtown for the Morayta-based dribblers, who failed in their bid to wrest a record 20th overall championship. Non-factors were newly-crowned MVP RR Garcia, 2010 Rookie of the Year Terrence Romeo, and Mythical Five member Aldrech Ramos. Garcia, who received the award before the game, just had six points although he came up with eight rebounds and six assists. Romeo was held to just two points while Ramos tallied nine points but pulled down only three rebounds. – JVP/RCJ/HS/KY, GMANews.TV