THE BUILD-UP: The 1985 - 1986 Blue Eaglets

THE 1985 ATENEO JUNIORS TEAM

After the monumental success of the 1984 team it was time now for a coaching change and the Ateneo High School got a former champion player who can translate his experience to a team filled with new players and that is Coach Ogie Narvasa.  Ogie is the ideal Atenean, eloquent and articulate, he is also a workhorse on the court. He is the type of Coach who loves to teach and more importantly pass on to the next generation of Ateneans his basketball knowledge and Ateneo traditions. Although he was part of the “demoralized” era when the Ateneo made the switch from the once glamorous NCAA to the not so glamorous UAAP, he never hesitated to say yes to his alma mater when it was in need him, a genuine man for others! At the same time helping him train the players is the trainer of champions Cary Sevilla.

Mike Morales stops to pass the ball

The 1985 junior’s squad had a nice mix of new players that complemented the holdovers. Team Captain Randy Sevilla, Albert Mendoza and Jun Oledan were the only remaining players of the team that went perfect the previous year. The team is loaded with shooters in Alex Panlilio, Mannix Singson,  Jobe Buenviaje,and  Mike Morales. Slashers in Pal Lansigan, Jyden Arboleda, Nilo Siongco and  Raymund Morales another big guy in Rico Santiago, the point guard of the future Billy Del Rosario and their glue guy and Mr. Do it all Chris Huertas.  Unlike the previous year, this edition of the Blue Eaglets were not favored to win the title.  The frontrunners then were the Adamson Falcons led by the high scoring Romulo “Karl Mulong” Orillosa who scored 40 points almost at will. The UE Junior Pages were also in the talks because of eventual juniors MVP Modesto Hojilla. Lasty there is also the FEU Baby Tamaraws with the Baby tamaraw himself Elias Burden. 

Mannix to the rescue

The Blue Eaglets were trying to survive the first round as they lost two games against UST and UE and ended the round with a 4 – 2 win loss slate.  Coach Ogie Narvasa told the team that they cannot afford to lose another game for they will bid their championship aspirations goodbye if that happens. So in their last game in the first round against the then undefeated FEU Baby Tamaraws, the Blue Eaglets fought them tooth and nail and were down by two with a couple of seconds left. As mentioned, the three-point line was introduced this season and Mannix Singson took advantage of that as he sank a three pointer that saved the day for the Eaglets.  That win gave the Blue Eaglets the needed confidence and spunk they lacked in the first round. By the second round, Team Captain Randy Sevilla led the team’s surge to the finals as the Blue Eaglet’s offense just clicked and their defense was relentless which gave the Katipunan team their third straight championship by defeating the FEU Baby Tamarawas in the championship. In retrospect, this team was very raw but Coach Ogie Narvasa’s experience as a champion himself gave the players the mindset on how to become champions and that is to become a cohesive unit that the team achieved from the second round onwards.

THE 1986 ATENEO JUNIORS TEAM

When the tryouts for the 1986 UAAP juniors team came everyone was excited once again because not only were there new blood coming from the other junior ranks but also a new Coach was coming in – Chot Reyes.  The new team captain now was Mike Morales and together with Jobe Buenviaje, Billy del Rosario and Rico Santiago welcomed the new team with open hands.  Elevated from the PRADA team then was a thin senior sometimes called as the lean stringbean machine – Danny Francisco.  Danny Francisco's first venture into sports was competitive swimming.  He used to swim at the Valle Verde country club under the Lozada school of swimming. What got him started into playing basketball was the fact that the classrooms in grade school was surrounded by basketball courts and during our time we would use the remaining time of recess and lunch to play basketball. Swimming’s loss is basketball’s gain as Danny got accepted in the PAYA team and he developed his shooting skills as a forward back then. In one summer, Danny grew from 5’7 to 6’1 and played for the PAYA aspirants and PRADA teams as an underclassman. He eventually made it to the UAAP juniors team in his fourth year in High school.  On the other hand, Jojo Habana was one of the new power forwards of the team and was beast inside the paint. His superb leaping ability and athleticism helps him operate inside the paint with the greatest of ease. Another addition to the team came from Lourdes grade school and worked his way up to the Juniors team because of his playmaking and defense. The hardworking Olsen Racela was never flashy nor was he a scoring machine but the way he orchestrates the team’s offense and the way he shuts down the other team’s guard earned the nod of Coach Chot. Supporting Mike Morales in the shooting department are do it all guards Patrick Ildefonso and Vincent Cruz. Another speedster at the point guard position is Alfie Manlulo who can score and call out plays when needed.  If the team needs slashers then theres Romy Merino, Darren Javier and Aaron de Guzman while Edwin Galicia is the other big man coming off the bench.

 

Another reason that made the 1986 UAAP season exciting was that it was the first year of the Dela Salle Zobel Bengals. With Chot Reyes at the helm, the 1986 Blue Eaglets team were probably the most prepared team in the league. Chot would break down defensive assignments, offensive patterns and let the players visualize what would happen. The result was annihilation of all their opponents. Their patented fastbreak anchored on Danny Francisco getting the rebound and hitting Billy del Rosario with a baseball pass that always translated to two points.  The first round saw the Blue Eaglets wreak havoc as the Eaglets running game, unforgiving defense and superb three point shooting gave the team from Katipunan a seven – zero first round win loss record.  What made the season more exciting was the Ateneo vs Las Salle 2nd round encounter and a close fight was in the offing as the Bengals fought toe to toe with the Blue Eaglets. The game was so hotly contested that saw a La salle player go below Billy del Rosario while he was catching the ball that led to Billy falling down head first. A fight almost ensued as the crowd, including the bus load of DLSZ students that came to watch were all ready to mix it up. Eventually the game resumed and the Blue Eaglets went to business and buried the Bengals with a flurry of points that had them win more than 20 points. Although everyone predicted a sweep and the finals game against Adamson which was a rout looked anti-climatic, we will always take 14 – 0 everyday as the Blue Eaglets completed the four-peat in stunning fashion.

After a successful campaign in the juniors division, most of the graduating players from the Blue Eaglets tried out for the seniors team. Danny Francisco and Jojo Habana were immediately taken in while the others were cut from the team including Olsen Racela. JV Gayoso eventually finished his one year residency, Albert Mendoza and Raymund Morales were activated after serving as reserves in their freshman year together with two more point guards. There was a logjam at the point guard position considering that the Blue Eagles were about to get another point guard from UST so Olsen was let go. Racela then tried out with the UP Maroons and again he was cut.  Since Olsen passed the ACET he decided to concentrate on his studies and let go of his dream of becoming a Blue Eagle.But sometimes lady luck comes calling back as Racela was called back to tryout once again with barely weeks to go before the opening of the 1987-1988 school year.  Apparently, the two reserved point guards encountered academic problems while the third point guard they were inviting from UST stayed in Espana. Now the management then were looking for a player to back up Jun Reyes and since Olsen was a part of the 1986 juniors team and was already accepted at the Ateneo they gave him another look. Now Olsen is the master of second chances, he was originally cut from the Paya aspirants team when he was a freshman in High School but toiled hard to be noticed then eventually included in the line-up. Olsen is an old school point guard who distributes the ball well, is pesky on defense and lets his offense flow as the game progresses. With that Olsen became the 14^th member of the 1987 Ateneo Blue Eagles.

NEXT BLOG: THE REINFORCEMENTS

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