ADMU vs UP, Round 1 of the Battle of Katipunan in UAAP 70
Round 1 of the “Battle of Katipunan” went to the Ateneo Blue Eagles, they walloped the Fighting Maroons 55-79. In my entire history of watching basketball this was the first time for me to watch a game that had garbage time starting at the onset of the 4th quarter. The Blue Eagles just took out the will to “play” from the Fighting Maroons.
- In fairness to the UP Fighting Maroons, they didn’t have 2 Key players for them as they were out sick. These two players were DLSZ alumni Martin Reyes and Serios, both contributed greatly to the offense of the Fighting Maroons in their first game.
- Iceman Chris Tiu was Ice Cold for the Blue Eagles as he missed his shots terribly. He however made up for it by setting up teammates in the paint and donning his other hat, which is titled “Leader”.
- Frontline of ADMU was menacing. Rabeh Al-Hussaini had 21 pts and 12 rebounds while Ford Arao finished with 16 and Jobe added 8. Great to see that the “Bigs” can finally receive a pass from a slicing ADMU guard without dropping it. Great off season development for them. If I remember correctly, that was even with shot blocking machine Zion Laterre on the bench. He was only fielded in the 2nd half of the game.
- With the lead comfortably ahead, Coach Norman Black was able to give some playing time to his Rooks. Kirk Long showed flashes of what the future could hold for the ADMU team. Although he failed to score he gave great assists to the big men inside. Kirk Long consistently broke down the defense with his quick first step.
- UP’s inexperience showed, when the lead reached double digits they started rushing things. Not even attempting to set up plays in one instance. UP Coach Joe Lipa showed that familiar red scowl of his as he vented on his young wards. Made me realize even more that this is a team chalked full of Sophs and Rookies.
- Aside from the inexperience of the team, what was severly lacking was a good Point Guard that can dictate the tempo of the game for UP. And I’m not even touching on the topic of orchestrating plays for them. In the first half, UP chalked only 2 assists versus ADMU’s 8, passing was not in the Fighting Maroon’s vocabulary that day. Eaglets superstar, Gamboa, has to mature quickly for his team as their starting PG.
- Soc Rivera was the only big man for the Maroons, he was swamped I tell you. In the first half alone, UP made only 17 rebounds versus ADMU’s 31. About twice the output of UP. Most teams have probably already noticed this, that UP has a lack of tall players.
- Julius Wong carried the team for the Maroons with Migs De Asis saddled with fouls and Woody Co swamped and missing his 3’s. Coach Lipa has to develop a 3 man half court game for these guys. Scratch that, make it a four man game with Co and De Asis on the perimeter and Soc Rivera at the lower post, either waiting for a drop pass or an offensive rebound.
The true test of the ADMU “Bigs” will be this Sunday when they go up against the UE Red Warriors. A team known very well for its stifling Defense. By that time they have to get their 3 pt shooting going so that the Red Warriors can’t just clamp down on their bigs via a zone defense. Not to mention that their “Bigs” have to keep their composure when going up against the seasoned frontline of UE.
The UE squad was in attendance watching the game after mopping up NU in the first game. Never too early to prepare, Coach Pumaren of the DLSU Green Archers was also in the stands watching the game. On ADMU’s side, PLDT Top Honcho, Manny V. Pangilinan was also present to cheer his team on.
The good news for UP? Hey its still the first round. If I remember correctly, UST was 5-2 before eventually winning the UAAP crown last year. And the good news for ADMU?, UE was up 20 in their game against NU before NU was able to bring down the lead to just 1. Of course UE gained their composure to deliver the win but that just shows that their seasoned offense can hiccup and lose focus given the right pressure.
ADMU 79 Al-Hussaini 21, Arao 16, Reyes 9, Nkemakolam 8, Barracoso 7, Austria 5, Tiu 4, Monfort 3, Baldos 2, Salamat 2, Laterre 2, Long 0, Baclao 0, Sumalinog 0, Escueta 0.
UP 55 Wong 12, Rivera 9, Co 9, Serios 8, Gamboa 6, De Asis 5, Dela Victoria 2, Epres 2, Agbayani 2, Marfori 0, Lopez 0, Rosales 0.
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Tags: The Battle of Katipunan, UAAP 70, ADMU Blue Eagles, UP Fighting Maroons
i cant believe the fighting maroons lost! hehehe ^^
They’re quite a young team right now, punctuated further by the exit of Marvin Cruz for the pro’s