ANOTHER dream season for reigning three-time champion Ateneo?
Despite an unbeaten 11-0 record, don’t tell that to coach Tab Baldwin, who pointed out that the wear and tear all teams have to endure could derail the Blue Eagles’ bid.
“I said at the beginning of the season that I thought it would be almost impossible to go without a defeat through the season, and I still think it’s a remote possibility,” Baldwin said after Ateneo outgunned National University 89-75 last Saturday in the 84th UAAP basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.
“Nonetheless, I think that you see that when teams get leads, it’s hard to hold on to the leads because players are mentally and physically tired,” added Baldwin whose charges need only five more wins to wind up with a perfect campaign like they did three years ago.
Gunner Dave Ildefonso scattered a game-high 17 points, pulled down nine rebounds, and issued three assists for the Eagles, while naturalized Filipino center Ange Kouame finished with 16 markers, two boards, and two dimes.
Ateneo scored a big follow-up to its merciless 101-51 dismantling of University of Santo Tomas last Thursday.
The Bulldogs came off a heartbreaking 57-59 loss to Far Eastern University also last Thursday and dropped to 4-7 for seventh.
The Eagles also beat NU 74-64 in their first-round duel last April 5.
The season where teams are holed up in a bubble in their campuses began last March 26 with all squads playing in every playdate on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, except when the UAAP took a Holy Week break.
Baldwin, whose wards also extended their winning streak to 37-0 since 2018, said the schedule is taxing.
“I just have to say that this schedule is brutal. It is really, really brutal. I think it’s really unfair to everybody because it’s just very difficult for the players and the coaching staff to maintain a high standard of performance, and that’s really what the fans want,” Baldwin said.
“I think that’s what everybody wants, the players want that, and it isn’t just our team. Everybody’s exhausted.”
Although weary, Baldwin gushed at how the Eagles are proving they have what it takes.
