A quick look at the basketball standings of the UAAP's Season 71 reveals that the usual suspects are where they usually are...with the La Salle Green Archers near the top, the UE Red Warriors, UST Growling Tigers and the FEU Tamaraws in the middle of the pack and the Adamson Falcons, UP Fighting Maroons and the NU Bulldogs struggling for scraps. And right at the top of the heap are the resurgent Ateneo Blue Eagles. The Norman Black-led squad has been serving notice to everyone that they are the team to beat this season.
There are three reasons why the Eagles seem to be flying higher than ever. First, excellent backcourt play from the troika of Chris Tiu, Jai Reyes and Eric Salamat. These three have been outplaying practically every other backcourt they play against, with Tiu bringing back memories of old Ateneo hotshots Olsen Racela and Richie Ticzon.
Second, the dominant play of Rabeh Al-Hussaini and Nonoy Baclao. These Ateneo big men have been the surprise package for Coach Black. Al-Hussaini has been showing a heretofore unknown offensive game, leading the Eagles in scoring with 33pts in their loss to FEU and 17 pts in their win against UST (plus a ton of rebounds). Noy Baclao logged in 9 rebounds and four blocks in the UST game (two fo which came in the last 2 minutes, preserving the Ateneo win). If other teams want to upend Ateneo, they need to take out these two giants.
And finally, Ryan Buenafe. The last rookie to have this kind of impact on the Eagles was named Enrico Villanueva...and he is now a bonafide PBA star and perennial RP Team candidate. I love how this kid plays like a veteran, making good decisions, never forcing his shots, doing all the little things on defense and generally showing why he was a highly touted high school MVP.
As the second round begins, it will be interesting to see how other teams plan to combat Ateneo's first round dominance... my guess is they will either install a brand new defensive scheme...or send the Eagles chicken pox shavings in the mail.
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