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Sunday, October 14, 2012

2012 BonFIve Highlights

Me and my co - Emcees

Jai , Gretchen & Gabe

My Batchmates Tent

ATENEO HS 1987 TABLE

ASSOC BOYS

Dave, Face, Dato & Momoy

enjoying the drinks

Moi with Ur & Rhea Rodrigo

With 4E Classmate

John Tanjangco

FATHER AND SON

UR AND TITO BOOGIE RODRIGO

4 AM & still

partying the 5th

THE FIVE PEAT POSE

INTERVIEWING THE BLUE EAGLES

EMCEEING WITH KARYLLE

OUR INTRODUCTION

THE BUTTERFLY STROKE

THE FAB FIVE

THE SWIMMING CHAMPIONS

THE LOGS BEFORE THE BONFIRE

THE BONFIRE CROWD

SONG FOR MARY

CONGRATS TO

THE ATENEO BLUE EAGLES

GO FOR SIX

Friday, October 12, 2012

When the 75th season of the UAAP was on the homestretch, a lot of Ateneans were praying that either FEU or NU would make it to the finals since we have beaten them convincingly the past three years. But as fate had it, in the last season of Coach Norman Black he was given the chance to redeem himself and avenge his only finals loss to a team that is by nature all heart and almost similar to the team his 2006 Blue Eagles lost to – the UST Growling Tigers. Early in the season assistant coach Gene Afable told me that this team is the hardest to motivate and rightfully so the loss to UST in the first round was a good motivation for team because finally the team has found a worthy adversary in the UAAP finals. In the last four finals that the Blue Eagles played, the average winning margin against DLSU in 2008 was 9.5, UE in 2009 was 10, FEU in 2010 was 13 and FEU in 2011 15. Their 5 point win in game 1 was their lowest lead in a championship opener in the last 5 years.

The Avenger - Coach Norman

Vengeance was the plot that a lot of scribes were writing about as they said Coach Norman‘s team was out to avenge their 2006 loss to the Growling Tigers. But Coach Norman was quick to answer “ none of my players were on that team!” But looking at some subplots, some of the players had payback on their mind on some of the Growling Tigers for one. Kiefer Ravena, Juami Tiongson and Frank Golla were part of the 2007 team that lost to the DLSZ Junior Archers that was bannered by UST’s ace point guard. On the other side of the fence, Justin Chua’s senior year in the Tong Lian tournament was foiled by a then junior scorer from Xavier who is now the King Tiger. As they say, getting back at your tormentor is one of the most gratifying emotions one could ever feel.

Nico Salva, Finals MVP

The Ateneo Blue Eagles rewrote history by capturing its fifth straight UAAP Seniors basketball title by defeating the UST Growling Tigers 65 – 62 in game 2 of the UAAP Finals at the SMART Araneta Coliseum. The win was a fitting send-off to the five players who have used up their eligibility with Salva, Chua and Gonzaga being there in all five teams and to their Coach Norman Black who will go back to the PBA to coach the Talk and Text team. With the win, Coach Norman has slewed the ghost of 2006, the only Ateneo title run that has haunted him and for some it was 2006 all over again the way the Tigers came back in the game but Coach Norman is wiser this time and happier as he leaves a legacy that all Ateneans are praying would happen again in the future.

Kiefer Ravena flies high

The other subplot in the Ateneo – UST tussle made Kiefer Ravena, Frank Golla and Juami Tiongson pumped up to get back at the remaining main man of that 2007 DLSZ team that beat them– Jeric Fortuna. On the other hand Justin Chua’s grand exit in High School was foiled by the other Jeric – Jeric Teng. As fate would have it, Juami, Kiefer and Jeric would provide endgame heroics to their respective teams with neither one buckling and no one giving up. Juami Tiongson was the budding star of the 2007 Blue Eaglets then but back then he seemed to be always out of control, this time around he paced his game well and more importantly made shots that mattered the most like his back to back baskets in Game 1, fortunately all of Juami's heroics came during crunch time.

Juami shows the Magic of Tiongson

After his Game 1 heroics once again Juami showed what stuff he is now made off when crunch time came. In the fourth quarter with less than 90 seconds to play the ball rotated to Juami who was at the three point area. With the time winding down the last four seconds, Juami faked off Kevin Ferrer and with time winding down to 2 seconds the man they call Magic Tiongson scored off a running shot to push the Men in Blue ahead 62 -58. After free throw exchanges, it was Kieferime this time as Kiefer who was being guarded by Clark Bautista made a crossover move to give hime some driving space as he surged ahead, stepped back and elevated to score to make the count 65 -59 with 50 seconds left. Not to be out done, Jeric Fortuna who was sizzling all night long let go a three pointer that hit the back board and went in and just like that the Tigers were back in the ball game 62 – 65. In the ensuing play, Juami Tiongson was about to ice the game with two free throws but uncharacteristically missed both to give the Tigers another chance to tie the game. In 2007 the Junior Archers forced overtime after a buzzer beating three pointer, they eventually won that game. With that in mind, Tiongson made up for his flubbed freebies by covering Fortuna well and stealing the pass by Clark Bautista to send the Ateneo crowd into howls of victory as the Blue and white has come alive as the drive for five is now reality.

Kiefer dagger

The drive for five would have not been realized if not for the efforts of the 34 players who have don the Blue and White the past five years with Nico Salva, Justin Chua and Zags Gonzaga playing in all those five teams. Ryan Buenafe, Juami Tiongson and Frank Golla can follow it up next year. But for now, Nico Salva is on top of the UAAP as he has been voted as the first back to back Finals MVP since the inception of the award in 2001. Nico scored 30 points in game one and 8 points in game two and the missing piece in Game 1, Greg Slaughter rebounded from a subpar game to score 15 points and hauled down 11 rebounds.

Ryan posts up

Ryan Buenafe on the other hand had to battle tonsilitis and his body was not 100% come game time. But just like any seasoned veteran, he played like he was about to score so that he can attract a double team or other defenders for him to give a good pass to an open team mate. The Buenafe pass of the day was when he took a shot and when it hit the front rim and was about to go out of bounds, Ryan chased the ball and with him almost going down he was able to see a cutting Greg Slaughter who got the pass and was able to finish the play. These intangibles are what makes the Ateneo Blue Eagles the best the past five years and as an era ends, another window opens for the Blue and White. Next year they will not be favored which will work to their favor but before we go into that, lets congratulate the five peat champions once again, Ladies and Gentlemen,the 2012 UAAP Seniors Basketball Champions - the Ateneo Blue Eagles. As i have said all season long, Ateneo, Come Alive, Feel the vibe, Glori-5!!!

The scores

ATENEO (65)

Ravena 22, Slaughter 15, Tiongson 10, Salva 8, Chua 6, Gonzaga 3, Sumalinog 1, Buenafe 0, Elorde 0, Golla 0,

UST (62)

Fortuna 20, Teng 9, Lo 8, Abdul 8, Ferrer 7, Bautista 6, Mariano 4, Vigil 0, Pe 0, Afuang 0

Quarterscores: 13 – 14, 29 – 29, 47 – 46, 65 - 62

Ateneo: Come Alive, Feel the Vibe

Glori-5!!!

Sunday, October 7, 2012

Blue Eagles win Game 1

Two of Nico Salva's 30 pts.

"Everything negative - pressure, challenges - is all an opportunity for me to rise." Maybe that was what Kobe Bryant said to Nico Salva for the latter to earn the nickname NIKOBE! Salva, rose to the occasion as he rebounded from his subpar 2nd round encounter against the Growling Tigers to score 30 points to lead the five-peat seeking Ateneo de Manila Blue Eagles to a masterful 83 -78 win against the upset conscious University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers in Game 1 of the Season 75 Seniors Basketball finals.

Ryan scores off Jeric Teng

Salva has helped the Blue Eagles keep pace with the Growling Tigers in the first half as he scored 15 of the 31 points of the Katipunan based Blue Eagles. The Tigers waxed hot in the first half as Aljon Mariano and Jeric Teng both brought their “A” games to the finals. The Blue Eagles could not match the energy that the Tigers exuded and like a well oiled machine the Tigers ran the floor smoothly and shot the ball well. In contrast, the Blue Eagles had 10 turnovers in the first half with most of them unforced. Former Juniors MVP Kevin Ferrer was doing a good job denying Kiefer Ravena the ball and the result was a two point first half for the former rookie of the year. Greg Slaughter on the other hand and Karim Abdul were both non factors in the game as they were constantly double teamed and the ball hardly got to them as Slaughter and Abdul had 5 and 7 attempts in the game respectively. UST led by as much as 11 points in the first half 36-25, as Mariano and Teng repeatedly torched the hoops for a 38 -31 first half lead by the España based Tigers.

Justin scores off Karim

The difference between the first half and the second half for the Blue Eagles were like night and day. Finally the Blue Eagles came out with more spunk, more swagger and more energy as compared to their relaxed and tentative start. In a wink of an eye, the Blue Eagles erased the UST lead and created their own 11 point lead. Nico Salva started the scoring for the Blue Eagles, then Juami Tiongson sank a three pointer, Nico converted another jumper then Kiefer Ravena sank a three pointer. Salva and Ravena scored on two more field goals while Slaughter split his charities to give the Blue Eagles a 48 - 38 lead. Kevin Ferrer would break the Tigers silence at the 3:37 mark with a drive down the heart of the Ateneo defense which was answered by a thre pointer by Nico Salva that gave the Blue Eagles their biggest lead 51 – 40 with 3:13 left in the third quarter. The quarter would end with the Blue Eagles erecting a ten point lead 61 – 51 – a thirty point third quarter.

Juami scored when needed

Just like what everybody predicted, the finals is like a pendulum with each team just looking for the right momentum to swing it to their side. At the start of the fourth quarter, Aljon Mariano took matters into his own hands as he orchestrated another fourth quarter comeback for the Thomasians by scoring nine points in a 13 - 2 run that was punctuated by a fastbreak dunk by Karim Abdul to give back the upperhand to the Tigers 64 – 63 with 6:57 left in the game. The UST crowd suddenly came alive and the championship lived up to its billing with both teams trading punches. The turning point came with 3:04 left and the Blue Eagles protecting a three point lead 73 – 70, Ryan Buenafe once again hit the big shot as he nailed a three pointer and got fouled by Teng. After finishing the four point play, the Blue Eagles were in line for another Game 1 win as Juami Tiongson scored on back to back drives and Kiefer Ravena put the nail in the coffin with a jumper with 8 seconds to go. Mariano and Teng scored 8 points in that span for the final score 83 – 78 with the Blue Eagles drawing first blood.

Keifer scores

with 8 seconds left

Game 1 of the finals is probably one of the best in recent years as the Tigers shot a whopping 52.3% from the field with Mariano shooting 9 for 15 (60%) and Teng 10 for 17 (59%) while Salva making 14 of 23 shots (61%) and Juami Tiongson 5 of 9 (56%). The Tigers were awarded more free throws but unfortunately the 9 missed free throws, 4 in the fourth quarter, hit the Tigers hard.

Ryan scoring the tying basket

A commotion happened after the game when Coach Pido Jarencio lambasted the referees and had a litany of things to say about the officiating during the press conference after the game. Jarencio blew his top on the foul called on Karim Abdul, the UST center’s 5th foul and the free throws that were not awarded on the alleged foul on Jeric Teng who took a three point shot as time expired. Unfortunately his appeal fell into deaf ears. The Blue Eagles can wrap up their 8th UAAP title on Thursday and the 22nd over-all Collegiate title of the Blue Eagles (NCAA and UAAP combined) - the most in country. One Big fight for the Blue and White.

Greg slaughtered

Individual Scores:

Ateneo (83 )

Salva 30, Ravena 13, Tiongson 12, Buenafe 10, Chua 9, Slaughter 5, Elorde 2, Gonzaga 2, Golla 0, Sumalinog 0.

UST (78)

Teng 25, Mariano 22, Ferrer 13, Abdul 9, Fortuna 4, Lo 3, Pe 2, Bautista 0.

Quarter Scores: 18-24; 31-38; 61-51; 83-78

Sunday, September 30, 2012

Blue Eagles drive for five still alive

Kiefer being guarded tightly

In this year’s 75th season of the UAAP, former National Youth players had their way in scoring with Bobby Ray Parks of National University leading the way with a couple of 30 points games, Jeron Teng of DLSU followed suit and so did Terrence Romeo of FEU. Amidst all of those former youth campaigners, the most highly touted is the Phenom from the Ateneo. Content with sharing the scoring chores with the Blue Eagle veterans, Kiefer Ravena showed today what he can do when tasked to take most of the scoring load. Ravena scored 28 points, pulled down 12 rebounds and issued 7 assists in an all around game to lift the Ateneo Blue Eagles over the hard fighting De La Salle Green Archers 66 – 63 at the SMART Araneta Coliseum to give the Blue Eagles the chance to defend their title for a fourth consecutive time.

It's Ryantime

The De La Salle Green Archers were peaking at the right time and were on the rise as the new King Archer, Jeron Teng was more than everyone expected and finally the Green Archers were jelling as a team which gave them a final four date with the defending champs after squeaking past the FEU Tamaraws just last Wednesday. The Green Archers studied their archrivals well as Greg Slaughter,who topscored in their first round encounter, was kept at bay and was never a factor in the game. Ryan Buenafe, who topscored in their second encounter, was only given three pointers and everytime he drove inside he was met with stiff opposition. ON the other hand, the Green Archers torched the Blue Eagles with drop passes that resulted to points as Yutien Andrada was unstoppable around the hoop. Andrada went 7 for 8 on the field enroute to 17 points 6 rebounds and 3 block shots. His scoring helped the Green Archers erect an 11 point lead 49 – 38 with 9:38 to go in the game.

Dagger three over Webb

Sensing that he has the hot hand and that the Ateneo veterans were being covered well by the Green Archers, Ravena took matters into his own hands as he presided over a killer 17 – 6 run in the next five minutes as the Blue Eagles tied the score 55 – all with four minutes and 26 seconds left in the game. Ravena sank two three pointers and three free throws in that span while the Green Archers began to fire blanks. The Blue Eagles then opened a four point lead 61 – 57 with Slaughter scoring off a foul by the Green Archers as the jubilant Ateneo crowd began to celebrate. Unfortunately for the Blue Eagles, the comebacking Green Archers pushed them to the limit once more as Almond Vosotros scored five straight points to put the Archers on top 62 -61 with less than a minute to go.

Greg scores

At this point, it was time for Ryan Buenafe to take over. In the ensuing play, the Green Archers covered Ravena well who eventually saw Ryan in the corner. Buenafe was left alone at the corner of the court and liesurely sank a dagger three pointer to put the Blue Eagles on top 64 -62. Controversy almost got the better of the two teams as Kiefer Ravena was called an unsportsmanlike foul on buddy Jeron Teng in the waning seconds of the game. In contrast to the heroics of Ravena, Teng missed his second free throw and lost the ball when he drove to the hoop with three seconds left in the game. Buenafe was fouled in the inbound and he sealed the win with two free throws.

It was an all Keifer show

This marks the fifth consecutive time the Blue Eagles are in the finals and their opponent will be the UST Growling Tigers whom they are aching to get back at. Although most of the more high profile High School stars come from the NCAA juinors, Keifer Ravena showed that UAAP Juniors products are a cut above the rest. The Keifer Ravena era has just began, unleash the Phenom.

ATENEO (66)
Ravena 28, Salva 12, Buenafe 10, Tiongson 5, Slaughter 4, Chua 4, Sumalinog 3, Pessumal 0, Golla 0, Gonzaga 0, Elorde 0

LA SALLE (66)

Andrada 17, Vosotros 14, Teng 12, Torres N. 6, Torres T. 5, Van Opstal 3, Mendoza 2, Tampus 0, Webb 0

Quarterscores

14 - 12, 31 – 26, 38 - 47, 66 - 63

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Junior Olympians gain NAASCU Finals

Arvin Detubio on a difficult shot

There is something that coaches cannot teach in basketball – that is to have a big heart! The STI College Junior Olympians just showed that as their big heart gave them the needed boost to erase an insurmountable thirteen point lead to escape with a 78 – 75 hard earned victory against the hard fighting Our Lady of Fatima Junior Phoenix to give the Junior Olympians their first finals stint in the Juniors division of the 12^th National Athletic Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities. The Junior Phoenix have earlier forced a deciding game as the third seeded Fatima squad beat the twice to beat second seeded Junior Olympians 24 hours earlier 68 – 66. The Junior Olympians now face the undefeated CEU Baby Scorpions which automatically got seeded to the finals after sweeping the two rounds of the Juniors tournament.

Erven Silverie is fouled

The Junior Phoenix controlled the game early and had the Junior Olympians was could not shake off the pesky defense of the Junior Phoenix. Hotshot Erven Silverie could not find his range, Arjay Napeñas and Patrick Aquino had a hard time driving to the lane while Arvin Detubio was always challenged. The whole offensive arsenal of the Junior Olympians were silenced by the men in green. When the Junior Olympians would pound the ball inside or elude their defenders, the Junior Phoenix would foul them and let them earn their points from the stripe. That ploy by the Fatima Juniors proved to be a good gamble as the Junior Olympians would miss their free throws time and again.

Early in the third quarter, the Junior Phoenix waxed hot as Jowell Termullo and Ronell Panagodia gave the Antipolo based Junior Phoenix squad a 44 – 35 lead which the Junior Olympians quickly erased through the efforts of Arvin Detubio who cut the lead to one 45-44. Unfortunately for the Taguig based Junior Olympians, Matignas would catch fire once more to give the men in green another double digit lead 57 – 44 as the quarter eventually ended with the Junior Phoenix ahead by ten points 59 - 49.

Nino Romano sizzles

With Silverie firing blanks and the other Junior Olympians blowing hot and cold, an unlikely hero came out to spark the Olympians comeback. Shifty point guard Niño Romano’s heroics came in the nick of time as he ignited the sagging hopes of the Junior Olympians by presiding over a crippling 13 - 2 run highlighted by his drive on a fast break to push the Junior Olympians ahead 62 – 61 with 6:45 left in the game. The Junior Olympians suddenly came alive and their signature defense worked wonders as the Junior Phoenix were suddenly plagued with numerous turnovers and botched plays as the Olympians threatened to pull away with a five point lead 68 -63. The Junior Phoenix eventually settled down and came back courtesy of Termulo and Ronell Panogadia who combined to give the Junior Phoenix back the lead 72-71 with 1:47 left in the game which made the Juniors call time out.

Patrick Aquino rises up to the occassion

Hounded all game, Erven Silverie finally found a crease in the Junior Phoenix defense as he let go of a back breaking three pointer to give back the to the Junior Olympians a 74 – 72 lead and more importantly the momentum going into the last minute of the game. After a muffed offensive by the Men in Green Patrick Aquino finished the game with four straight points to give the Olympians a commanding 78 -72 lead with less than ten seconds left in the game. The Junior Phoenix showed their nerves of steel as they scored on a long three pointer by Dave Del Rosario to cut the Junior Olympians lead to three 78 -75. The men in green had one final attempt to secure overtime as Nino Romano and Arvin Detubio failed to ice the game with successive free throw misses. The half court heave by the Termullo came out short thus sending the Junior Olympians to their first finals appearance. Although Patrick Aquino topscored for the Junior Olympians it was a concerted effort by each team member as STI lives to fight another day.

Arjay Napeñas in traffic

STI COLLEGE (78 )

Aquino 17, Detubio 16, Napenas 13, Romano 11, Silverie 9, Raymundo 5, Ngolong 4, Parinas 3, Abuy 0, Justiniani 0, Jimenez 0.

OLFU (75)

Termulo 22, Matignas 14, Del rosario 12, Panogadia 12, Cabrera 4, Mejia 3, Nunez 2, Bargola 2, Bacay 2, Jarina 2.

Quarterscores: 13 - 19, 31 - 36, 49 - 59, 78 - 75.

Monday, September 17, 2012

Call me Mhel Gee

Ever since the Call Me Maybe craze came out I have always wanted to create a video myself. Unfortunately, my busy schedule prevented me from doing one. Luckily, because of an STI event I was able to do one. Just wanted to have fun in this video and hope you guys like it.

Thursday, September 13, 2012

Olympians play exhibition match

STI College and ACB

The STI College Olympians are gracious hosts but will always give you a cold reception when it comes to basketball games. The Olympians gave the visiting Australian College of Basketball 18 and under National Team a lesson or two in Philippine basketball as the Olympians beat the Aussie teeners 84 -66 at the STI Gym in the Bonifacio Global City in Taguig City. Seldom used forward Helino Francisco led the Olympians onslaught as the man dubbed as the Olympian’s secret weapon showed the teeners from down under how basketball is supposed to be played. Francisco led the scoring with 20 markers as local find Jim Patrick Lontoc gave the Global City crowd something to cheer about with his booming three pointers finding its mark. The Olympians fielded a mixture of Seniors and Juniors players since both teams have just come from a game the previous day.

Elmer Labis fouled

The Australian College of Basketball is Australia’s way of creating their own basketball legends. Everyone remembers Luc Longley who was Michael Jordan’s center in his second run for three titles. Andrew Gaze who was the many time Australian Olympian and just recently Shane Heel who was the Aussies stocky point guard. Just recently, Australia has made an effort to create more basketball heroes by creating grassroots programs in basketball and this tour in manila will definitely help their cause in the international scene.

Jim Lontoc is so phenomenal

The game against the Olympians is the Aussies fifth game in four days with the previous four against the Ateneo Blue Eagles Team B, the Trace Stallions, and the Ginebra Gin Kings. The tour of the Aussie teens was arranged by former Blue Eagle and PBA player Fritz Gaston who is at the helm of promoting Sports tourism in the country.

Franciso on the board

The Olympians who took part in this exhibition game are Marvin Moraga, Paul dela Pena, Ivan Moreno, Elmer Labis Jr., Carlo Saldaña, Jerome Ortega, and Lester Bocablo were from the Seniors team while Nino Romano, Fernando Ngolong, John Roy Pariñas, Josh Raymundo, Arvin Detubio and Jim Lontoc were the juniors campaginers.

Fernando Scores

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Blue Eagles formalize final four entry

The Unstoppable Greg S.

Adamson’s EJ Camson has been on a tear and is slowly beginning to be the Falcons go to guy. Shooting 6 of 10 from beyond the arc, Camson this time posts up to show to the Blue Eagle fans his versatility and as he posts up he is met by Nico Salva and is fouled and given two free throws with the Falcons protecting a one point lead with three minutes and twenty seconds left in the game. Unfortunately for Camson, this game is another one taht can be added in his crunch down melt down as he muffed his two free throws and the Blue Eagles countered with a paralyzing 9- 1 run to sneak past the upset conscious Adamson Falcons 79 – 72.

Kiefer acrobatic shot

Camson was at the forefront of another upset in the making but similar to his roles in their losses to UST and FEU, Camson who had the hot hand in this game did not get the ball in the final three minutes after missing two free throws. Nico Salva was left open and he nailed another jumper to give the Blue Eagles the lead 72 – 71 with three minutes left in the game. In the return play Jericho Cruz muffed a three pointer and Keifer Ravena drained two free throws after being fouled by Cruz himself to give the Eagles a 74 – 71 lead, their biggest for the evening.

Airtime!

The Falcons last stand came when Cruz missed another jumper but Camson grabbed the rebound and passed it to a waiting Roider Cabrera who was fouled by Salva. Cabrera went 1 for 2 from the free throw line which was the last point that the Falcons had as they went scoreless in the final two minutes. Kiefer Ravena anticipated a pass by Cruz which resulted in a Nico Salva basket. In the return play Ravena once again stole the ball for an unmolested lay up that sealed the win and a place in the final four for the league leading Blue Eagles.

Nico squeezes one in

Nico Salva led the Blue Eagles with 24 points as he went 11 for 14 on the field and 2 for 2 on the line. Most of Salva’s shots were jumpers and this is a big welcome to his return to big time scoring for the Blu Eagles. Greg Slaughter added 16 points, Kiefer Ravena ended up with15 points while Nico Elorde added 10 points. The Blue Eagles now eye the top spot with the National University Bulldogs and UST Growling Tigers as their next opponent.