Neutralized: AdMU vs. SSC-R (2011 PCCL Finals)

Ateneo 56, San Sebastian 51
Blue Eagles force do-or-die Championship Match


Ateneo 67, San Sebastian 73
Golden Stags win PCCL Championsip


-All throughout, it has been a battle of wills. On one hand, the Ateneo Blue Eagles and their followers sought for validation to something that has been already proven valid from the start. They have been crowned as champions in the Fil-Oil Pre-season tournament, the UAAP, and the Unigames, and one more big trophy in the shelves would not only be a proof as the most dominant team in the major leagues right now, but also, and to put an emphasis to it, inarguably such. On the other hand, the Golden Stags sought redemption. Despite boasting the best big three in the Metro in the likes of Calvin Abueva, Ian Sangalang, and Ronald Pascual, they fell short of a championship when the Red Lions, short of a Sudan Danel, held their ground in the last quarter of Season 87. Now being presented with the chance to show how they can fare with a champion of another league, and proving that they can be dominant. And it appears that between the two, the Stags wanted it more as they did not let a defeat against the Blue Eagles blur their vision of getting a trophy this year.

-Ateneo entered the PCCL Finals losing twice against the Golden Stags, and another loss would mean that Coach Topex Robinson's team would win the plum. The Blue Eagles responded in the first game when they tried to break the zone defense that cost them a week earlier. Nico Salva took care of the Blue Eagles' offense when he found the hole in that zone. Finishing with 18 points, he led Ateneo to a decider, a chance for them to get their fourth straight PCCL championship. However, during the second game, Calvin "The Beast" Abueva was scorching hot, as he made his way into two, three, or four Blue Eagles to make baskets or free up his teammates, and he finished with an impressive 20-point, 20-rebound effort for the Golden Stags' victory.

-For these two teams, two things have been significant. One of them was the battle of the top dogs. Ateneo has its Slaughter-Ravena-Salva trio, while San Sebastian only has Calvin Abueva and Ian Sangalang, missing Ronald Pascual due to ACL, and their defense was mostly about trying to neutralize these players and at the same time put the pressure on the rest. In Ateneo's game one win, the trio scored a total of 35 points, while SSC-R's duo had 27 of their own. But in Game 2, the tables have turned. While Salva has become dominant in the first game, Ravena and Slaughter had great difficulty scoring, resulting in a dismal performance. The trio only scored only 22 points, a far cry from their 30-plus averages in the UAAP. Subtract two more from this total and one gets Abueva's score alone, and add that to Sangalang and you get a whopping 39 points. These figures simply showed who has been the most dominant in that final match.

-The other significant thing was defense. Ateneo entered the Finals being branded as the best defensive squad in the UAAP. However, the fortress that they have held was destroyed repeatedly by Calvin Abueva's tough and intelligent plays, muscling it in to force Ateneo's men in the paint to swarm on him and hence provide open shots for Sangalang, Semira, and the rest of t Stags. On the other end, the Stags 2-3 zone implemented against the Blue Eagles was near perfect, as they had the Blue Eagles struggling to score from the paint and forcing them to shoot threes that were rarely perfect. Plus, they had a lot of those timely steals which forced crucial turnovers down stretches, something that the Blue Eagles really never encountered while playing in the UAAP.

-As Coach Norman Black says, the Blue Eagles just can't win it all. However, Ateneo, in another way, could be considered a winner in this match, as they have seen this early the adjustments and improvements they have to deal with in order to make it big once again in Season 75. From the guys on the bench, it seems that JP Erram and Oping Sumalinog will play during longer stretches, proving themselves to be effective on defense (the latter, especially, got the job of guarding Abueva in the first match).  On the other hand, Juami Tiongson might give way for Nico Elorde for playmaking duties to focus on scoring where he is really good at. And finally, Von Pessumal and Gwynne Capacio might need more training on footwork. Hopefully, the Blue Eagles get their mighty revenge on the Stags after three or four months of slugging it out and becoming a better team.

The Scores:

Ateneo 56 – Salva 18, Ravena 10, Slaughter 7, Long 7, Gonzaga 5, Sumalinog 3, Golla 2, Chua 2, Tiongson 2, Austria 0, Erram 0, Monfort 0

San Sebastian 51 – Abueva 16, dela Cruz 11, Sangalang 9, Vitug 9, del Rio 2, Ferrer 2, Miranda 2, Maiquez 0, Balacunag 0

Quarter scoring: 11-9, 26-23, 46-39, 56-51

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San Sebastian 73 – Abueva 20, Sangalang 19, del Rio 10, Vitug 9, Miranda 6, Maiquez 4, Semira 3, Jo. dela Cruz 2

Ateneo 67 – Long 11, Tiongson 11, Slaughter 10, Erram 9, Monfort 8, Ravena 7, Salva 5, Sumalinog 3, Gonzaga 3, Golla 0, Chua 0, Austria 0

Quarter scoring: 17-16, 36-29, 57-49, 73-67

Credits to the UAAP Official site for the pic and Inboundpass.com for the scores