Eagles wiser, tougher this time
It’s like déjà vu for Ateneo. First, they went the full route before surviving a fiercely fought Final Four duel with Far Eastern. Then with little time to catch their breath, they immediately have to face off with La Salle in the UAAP Season 80 men’s basketball finals.
But unlike the previous season, the Eagles feel they’re better-equipped to contend for the coveted diadem against their high-powered rivals this time around.
“We’d like to think we have grown, matured a lot from last year,” said AdMU assistant coach Sandy Arespacochaga after formalizing their title rematch with the defending champions with a hard-earned 88-84 overtime decision over No. 4 FEU.
“We have a chance to write our own history because if we just look at last year, then, ‘oh, La Salle’s going to win’ but we can write our own history (this time) and we know it’s not going to be easy so it’s a very good test of character for the boys, another opportunity for them to grow,” he said.
The Eagles prefer to call it a blessing instead of pressure.
“Just to have the chance to compete for the championship is already a very big blessing so even though we’re up against a very strong team, we see it as a blessing. Hopefully, we’ll write our own history; hopefully, we’ve learned enough lessons from the past that we’ll be able to translate into action,” he said.
Arespacochaga insists the Eagles aren’t the favorites in this dream finale.
“La Salle’s the defending champs, they got the MVP (Ben Mbala), they’ve got very good players and if you look at it man for man, it’s a very big task for us,” he said.
“But we’re not looking at it man for man, we’re gonna look at our matchup as a team, the way we’ve done every game. We have to approach this as a team and figure out a way to get an upset over La Salle,” he said.
He said while Mbala poses the biggest threat, the Eagles can’t afford to exclusively focus on the Cameroonian, who’s bound to get his second MVP plum.
“We’ve got to find a way to stay out of foul trouble against Mbala. But at the same time we’re saying this, La Salle is not a one-man team; they’re a good team,” he said.
La Salle also had the luxury of preparing for the finals longer after cashing in on their F4 incentive versus Adamson.
“We have to dig deep and be ready to play inspite of the circumstances, like we’re tired from the overtime game. Fatigue is not a factor right now. We got to find a way to overcome that,” said Arespacochaga.