I Am Not Going Anywhere….YET!
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Ateneo played a gritty game and wanted to take no chances. After a slow start and allowing La Salle to take an early 7 point lead, the Blue Eagles just would not give up and even overtook La Salle in the first quarter. La Salle however came back and ended the quarter ahead by 1 point.
With Norman Black looking for combinations to match up against La Salle’s sticky defense Ateneo could just not find a way to break it. But Ateneo kept La Salle scoreless in the first 3 minutes of the 2nd quarter and took the lead which they managed to keep……wait….what am I doing here?
Forget this politically correct write-up I was going to make. In front of a crowd of more than 23,000 people, La Salle won the game 65-60 and is now in the finals. HOW SWEET IT IS! First it was 2 is better than 1. Now it’s 2 is better than 3.
Coach Franz Pumaren promised a victory and the whole Lasallian community got what we wanted. Pumaren outcoached a befuddled Norman Black, who just could not find a combination to break the patent Franz Pumaren defense. Black was given a lesson on the difference between college and PBA coaching.
There were 2 things La Salle did today that made a difference. The first and foremost was excellent game clock management and second the players executed what the coach instructed.
When the 2 minute mark was called by the barker and La Salle up by 7, the tension on the La Salle side was so thick, you could cut it with a knife.
It was the best end game that the Green Archers had played all year. They did not hurry the shot and took the ball to the basket. With less than a minute to go and La Salle up by 5, Ateneo’s Baclao hits a 3 that cut the lead to 2.
The turning point of the game was when La Salle was up by 2, takes a shot and Pocholo Villanueva grabbing the offensive rebound. He brought the ball back to midcourt before running down the clock and then making the 2 pointer from the side. Ateneo couldn’t get a basket on their offense and La Salle would get the defensive rebound.
This is where Black really messed up. Ateneo was not in penalty. When a team is down by 5 with 2 minutes to go, the team behind should be in penalty because it is the only way you can get the ball back. La Salle is known for its foul shooting woes but Black could not take advantage of it. When Ateneo finally committed 3 successive fouls to get into penalty, they fouled OJ Cua, who missed both his shots. But it was too late. Ateneo could not make a shot. They fouled JV Casio and he hit his 2 foul shots.
After his awful last game, Pocholo Villanueva finally showed the leadership and experience that was expected of him. He was the player who managed that game clock in the end game. TY Tang took Villanueva’s cue and masterfully directed the offense.
Also having a great game was PJ Walsham. He did not take bad shots but instead concentrated on rebounds and defending the inside, which is what that bulk and size he has is best put to use. He kept Ford Arao stifled and ineffective.
Bader Malabes, though offensively still a feast or famine player, made up for it on the defensive end by taking Chris Tiu totally out of sync. Tiu just could not break free as Malabes stuck to him like bread on butter.
Two players who also gave quality minutes were OJ Cua and Ferdinand. Cua hit some clutch shots in the early going and stood his ground on defense. Ferdinand, who is becoming my favorite player, is a boy in a man’s body but today he showed that he will be a vital cog in La Salle’s future.
Not to be forgotten are TY Tang, JV Casio and Rico Maeirhofer. Tang, who took the entire 2 rounds of the regular season to finally break out had fire in his eyes today. From the opening toss you could see he wanted this game more than anyone else.
The mild mannered Casio, who has been nursing a injury for the last 3 games, may not have hit most his step back 3s but it was the intangibles that made him so effective. His gutsy drives to the basket and his pesky defense will make Salamat and Escueta have nightmares for days to come.
Rico Maierhofer, who was playing with a severely sprained ankle, fought for the rebounds and made the inside plays when it counted. His presence alone under the basket is enough to intimidate the offense.
Lastly, what can one say about Coach Franz Pumaren? Every time they count him out, he pulls a rabbit out the hat. Everytime he has lemons, he makes great tasting lemonade. This team was counted out. Some were calling for his head. But he just keeps finding a way to make La Salle a consistent powerhouse in the UAAP.
This will be a season that Ateneo can call the “WHAT IF SEASON�. What if they beat FEU in the first round? What if they beat NU in their last game? What if they won one of those close games against UE? What if it would not have been a step ladder but a Final Four? What if they won today? The fact of the matter is that they now have a year to think about their season while La Salle is in the finals.
To many of us proud Lasallians, this is one year that winning the finals will be icing on the cake.
ANIMO LA SALLE!
Tags: Ateneo, blue-eagles, Franz-Pumaren, Green-Archers, La-Salle, The-Green-Mind, UAAP, uaap-70, UAAP-Season-70Related posts
(4 votes, average: 4.25 out of 5)
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bilad
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 12:18 pm
fINAL, kahit pinaguusapan, at kung totoo man yun na pinaguusapan na, bakit hindi nila inilabas agad? naunahan pa sila ng la salle.
ang evidence nasa uaap naman kasi lahat ng student records naka submit doon at the only thing to do is check records sa decs.
mahirap yung sabihin “pinag-uusapan” pero wala naman pruweba. sa korte walang bisa yan. for all you know, nung naging ugong-ugong na yan doon na nag check ang la salle. kaso you did not even give la salle the benefit of the doubt.
at saka, was DECS reprimanded by the UAAP or at least reported the incident to DECS higher-ups? hindi. all the UAAP board did was suspend la salle. eh sa issue nito, ang DECS people naman ang may kagawan ng falsification. la salle was not involved. it was between those studes and decs. or maybe, some of la salle’s recruiters. pero ang naparusahan, buong school.
wala naman kaming magagawa na baguhin ang isip ninyo. basta, we are the champions this year and that will vindicate us. who has the last laugh, now?
fINAL
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 11:49 am
bilad, hate to burst your bubble but the truth is, the news has been around months before the “voluntary” exposure of La Salle last year. In short, pinag-uusapan na yan sa UAAP board to check on these players months before the actual voluntary exposure of La Salle (hindi mo lang alam).
I will give necessary credit to the LS brothers IF(?) for some reason, they honestly didn’t know about it. But sorry talaga, kasi si franz, alam nya. Water under the bridge na yan but please lang, don’t put your high hopes on supposedly an honest act ni coach franz kasi, that is farthest from the truth. Sadly, that is the truth.. But nevetheless, if is a fact that La Salle voluntarily exposed it before UAAP did…no denial on that…but not without malice….please lang.
nadala na kasi ang board sa antics ng lasalle, like fielding in players like Limpot,etc before from St. Benilde and claiming that that it is still La Salle Univ. Oh well, basta maka lusot….at all cost….i guess that is what makes you proud being green. Can’t prejudice you on your claim…….that is yours to make and keep for life. Sayang lang kasi the truth does not always come out in the open and a lot don’t really know the real picture………….and, there’s a lot more, actually………….
sana, wala lang putting down schools no? kasi each one has his own perspective naman, be it true or colored according to taste. but the truth needs to come out, kaya, sorry to burst some of your bubbles.
redmantra
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 11:48 am
sinisi mo pa decs. isa lang ibig sabhin nyan, that la salle accept fake papers from the fake players. tapos sasabihin nyo kayo nagbunyag. sinu ba naman tangang tao aaminin ang duming ginawa nya, o ilalaglag kapwa nya la salista. amf.
pogi
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 11:27 am
@anonymous
nyeeehhh inggittero na naman. nakikialam na naman kayo eh. hindi naman namin intention na mandaya, kung yun ang intention eh di bakit kami aamin. gusto nyo lang pamuka sa sambayanang pilipino ang pagkakamali namin para ipakita nyo na magaling kayo pero hindi naman. sa nangyari nga nayon mas accountable ang decs kasi test nila yun, pero hindi na nagturo ang lasalle. kayo kasi magaling kayo magmalinis at magturo. di kayo marunong umamin ng pagkakamali. envious lang kasi kayo dahil di lang kami lamang sa basketball, pati sa academics na rin. problemahin nyo nalang school nyo. pati kami pinoproblema nyo. di lang kayo inggit, mga epal pa.
napakayamang lasalista
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 11:21 am
@kupalasalle
yan mapikon kayo. lalong sumasarap pakiramdam namin. sasama nyo magsalita ngayun tatapatan na namin kayo sa yabang at pamumuka namin sa inyo ang pagkabaho ninyo. sobra na kasi. inggit lang kayo sobra.
mang roger
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 11:14 am
sio, bedista ka no? philo? bumili ka naman saken ng balut!
blek, someone from your school just said that bedans envy la salle, basahin mo yung comment ni MR. Archer around 2:30pm kahapon… correction lang…
goodluck bukas, im cheering for la salle..
anonymous
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 11:14 am
you didn’t deserve the suspension ba camo? sus.
whether you volutarily returned the championship and did your investigation and whatnot, you guys still cheated. tatanggap kayo ng lasalistang hindi man lang makapasa ng pep test? sus.
and when you win the crown, will you guys feel vindicated? there’s no vindication in cheating, you know. you deserved to be suspended.
hahaha
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 11:13 am
oo nga e, pansin mo rin.=p hahaha.
sio
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 11:04 am
kupalasalle? umm… taga u.e ka noh? halata palang sa mga words mo eh.
kupalasalle
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 10:04 am
mayamang lasalista. pinagmamalaki mo eskwala mo baka di mo maputok yan. ang tapang mo magsalita urong naman kayo sa suntukan. mga walang bayag. baka nga mas muka ka pang kargador sa palengke paksyet ka gago!
pavlik
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 9:38 am
ngayun nakahanap kayo ng katapat titirahin nyo pagpatol namin. wala kami talagang panahon sa mga ganito di tulad nyong mga totoy na walang mga kaibigan. pero sumosobra na.
if you read the posts dinedefend lang namin school namin. no matther what it takes, you started it and were not gonna back down until you eat dirt. bitches!
inggitero
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 9:34 am
@blue marc
bakla ka kasi
blek
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 9:29 am
@genom
we did not say kasama bedans, for all we care about your school. someone may have said it pero again ang again, no one other than bernie oca has the right to represent the lasalle as a whole.
@tanong lang po
he owns this blog, he has every right to post what his thoughts are. we lasallites just defend our school from frequent bashing. ngayung nasapak sa inyo mga kalechehan nyo pamumuka nyo pa kaming masama. kayo naman nauna.
INGGIT LANG KAYO!
tanong lang po...
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 9:22 am
Mr. Atayde… Ang tanda tanda mo na, pumapatol ka pa sa mga ganitong forum? wala ka bang trabaho at meron kang oras para sa mga ganito? stick to writing your articles. wag ka na pumatol sa mga bata dito…
The Green Mind
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 9:17 am
Mr. Archer,
Thank you for your kind words.
GenoM
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 5:50 am
“Mr. Atayde, you have been the target of hate from Atenistas, Bedans, UE/FEU people and a myriad of other jealous folk. “- Mr. Archer
Mr. Archer, why would Bedans be jealous of LaSallites? We’re already champions, back to back even. How about you? Beating Ateneo does not guarantee you the title. Your quarrel is with the blue school not with us Bedans. Huwag masyado mag-feeling na inggit buong mundo sa inyo (or sayo lang) Anyway, goodluck to your team in the finals and see you in the ASG and CCL.
Live Jesus in Our Hearts?
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 5:31 am
Sus!
Utenista
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 5:29 am
Mr. Atayde, kumusta na ang mga kasama mo na tawag sa mga Atenista ay UTENISTA?
Live Jesus In Our Hearts? Plastic talaga kayo ano? Hayup din sa breeding ano.
Gosh!
bilad
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 4:37 am
to ateneans: tanggapin niyo na ang TALO ninyo. mabuti pa mga taga-UST after losing to you, they have laid low and have humbled themselves.
pati THES rankings hinahanapan pa ng butas. insecure talaga kayo.
MGA TALUNAN!
bilad
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 4:32 am
to all: in the first place, la salle was unjustly suspended last year. a lot of people just look at the benitez, et. al. incident and picture la salle as a cheat. nobody even bothered to give credit to the fact that it was la salle who exposed this issue VOLUNTARILY. now some are saying it was a pre-emptive move by la salle because they were already zeroing in on us. nice argument but nobody knows that. the only fact that remains is that it was la salle who first admitted they’re wrongdoing. and we got suspended for that.
to all lasallians: our vindication is forthcoming because we ARE the champions this year. God is with us.
Mr. Archer
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 2:38 am
The Green Mind, I’ve been reading your articles and I really saw a change in the way you handle the lowly attacks of other schools against ours. I admire the patience that you’ve extended to these barbarians, but I also understand why the sudden change in tactics was necessary.
The bottom line is, Lasalle is hated and bashed because in one way or another, we beat the competition. They are acting like this because they are envious of us. Envy turns to hate, push becomes shove, and before you know it, you’re called offensive names and held responsible for the lack of water in the Sahara. The truth is, these punks act mighty brave only because they’re hiding behind computer screens.
But back to why I am writing this message. Mr. Atayde, you have been the target of hate from Atenistas, Bedans, UE/FEU people and a myriad of other jealous folk. I only wish to remind you that you are the lodestar of love and admiration from all Green Archers. Your quality as a man of honour is exactly the kind that we have come to look up to in our Alma Mater.
Attacks and hate heaping against Lasalle will come as surely as the sun will rise. But may you never forget that we are by your side, rallying behind the shield of green and white.
Absit Invidia. Animo La Salle!
The Blue Marc
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 1:32 am
Good luck still to the blu- I mean, Green Archers, you have a good chance in beating the U.E. Red Warriors who have been quite “off”-season for some time.
The Blue Marc
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 1:23 am
to duh, Why in the world would I accept defeat after a very dirty match? (Ibahin mo ‘ko. Kung yung iba tinanggap, well not me!)
As for you my favorite columnist(you should be flattered), I have just presented you two ideas (TY Tang’s dad, and referees) but did I blatantly say that those two ideas are somehow, in one way or another, connected to each other?
Be rational.
You might be used to the referee issue, but there’s one thing I would like to tell you. We won three times against your team even through the prying eyes of the referees. I may sound very partisan, for I am indeed.
i’m not at all a green hater.
Kudos to the team, you took your ‘paid’ oppurtunity very well. (Dahil kung banu talaga kayo, kahit bayaran niyo eh talo pa rin kayo.)
I wouldn’t say “peace.”
amen.
jon jon
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 1:18 am
@agree
sa cheerdance yun. ganun talga pag inggit, kahit anong mali mo big deal. mas may pakialam pa nga sila sa pagkakamaling yun kesa sa buong lasalle community eh. para naman akala mo naging 489 ang ranking ng lasalle dahil alsalle ang naitaas ng pepsquad.
jon jon
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 1:15 am
@travis squire
well ganun daw, pero ganun din ang hype kay bj manalo before. sana wag masayang talent nya sa ateneo. ang lalim pa man din ng guard nila. sa amateur basketball kasi ang player ang sumasabay sa system ng team, hindi tulad sa pro na ibibuild yung team around sa talent ng pinakamagaling mong player. we’ll see.
fast facts.. intal, cuan and oj cua were brod members sa claret school nung grade school. la lang. share. cuan and cua left for ust and letran after graduating grade school. intal mas matanda ng 1 year pero he left ng 2nd year to go to letran. si cuan dati puro an an, si cua mabait talaga at magaling magbasketball. si intal mayabang, pero siya superstar ng buong school.
travis squire
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 12:39 am
i heard san sebastian junior stag ryan buenafe’s all set to play for ateneo next year…for me this kid’s the future of local basketball..this is a huge improvement for ateneo..very huge if you’ve been closely watching this kid play through the years..
Agree to Disagree
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 12:37 am
i don’t get the animo al salle thing. must have missed something. can someone please explain. sorry huli sa balita. (my bad)
Agree to Disagree
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 12:35 am
playing with their backs against the wall, winning 2 out of 3 knockout games is not really a total loss of a season.
believing despite the odds, not everyone can do this. win or lose, i believe in the blue eagles. even in defeat, their performance was nothing short of heroic. they didn’t give up. kudos for that.
if la salle is a superior school in terms of basketball and school surveys then so be it. agree to disagree. if these criteria would validate la salle being a better school and convince you to be better people then good for you.
i am still an atenean and still love ateneo even if everyone else in the world. wouldn’t have it otherwise. OBF. Blue Eagle THE KING.
lasallite
+0
Wednesday, 3 October 2007 at 12:10 am
To all haters and bashers from all sides.. You’re all just immature.. Ateneans: it’s
over.. better luck next year but I gotta give it to you guys for the heart and
determination that you showed all throughout uaap season 70… for the Lasallians who act
like barbarians : Please don’t tarnish the name of our school.. I agree with some of the
comments in this post… mga iba jan cguro bago lang sa Lasallian community.. I’ve been a
Lasallian all my life.. since kinder up to College (LSGH to DLSU LASALLE SYSTEM all the
way) and I don’t brag as hard as the other Lasallians here.. I also have friends from
Ateneo who are true blue Ateneans from Kinder to College.. I get along with them well..
I’d say It’s all about class.. Sad to say some Lasallians and Ateneans don’t have it… As
for the other schools: just please stay out of this.. this isn’t your battle… no matter
what people say, There’s nothing better to watch than a Lasalle Ateneo rivalry basketball
game.. all other games come in second… PERIOD.
elf
+0
Tuesday, 2 October 2007 at 11:56 pm
isnt it great na they envy lasalle? public enemy talaga. thats what happens when you always win, kinaiinggitan. well we will always defend our school no matter what.
if i happen to become a very powerful man someday, ill bomb every ateneo in this country and make ateneans my slaves. ill also feed their corpse to my dogs.
if this event occurs… remember the name..
ELF
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