The streak has ended.
Thirty nine straight wins. The Ateneo Blue Eagles’ last loss in the UAAP was against the FEU Tamaraws at the end of the first round of Season 81. This was back on October 10, 2018.
After that loss, Ateneo swept the second round (7-0) to end the elimination round as the number one seed with a 12-2 record. They then defeated FEU in one game during the Final Four, and then UP in two straight games during the best-of-three Finals.
10-0. Back-to-back champions.
In Season 82 Ateneo went on to win all 16 of their games to sweep the whole tournament. The 14-0 elimination round record sent them straight to the finals where they defeated UST in two straight games.
26-0. Three-peat champions.
Season 83 got canceled because of the pandemic. After more than two years, the Men’s Basketball tournament resumed this year.
In Season 84, they were 13-0 before today’s loss. The UP Fighting Maroon’s victory prevented another elimination round sweep.
Ateneo will now face FEU in the Final Four where they have a twice-to-beat advantage.
In order to eliminate Ateneo, FEU must win twice in a row. This means Ateneo must lose three straight games – something that hasn’t happened since the start of Season 76. This was way back in 2013, which was also the last time Ateneo didn’t make it to the Final Four.
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This isn’t Ateneo’s first 13-1 season in recent memory.
In Season 80, the Blue Eagles also lost the last game of the second round, that time to the La Salle Green Archers. They met again in the Finals that year, which Ateneo won in three games.
In Season 74, they lost the last game of the second round against the Adamson Soaring Falcons. They then went on to defeat the UST Growling Tigers in the Final Four and the FEU Tamaraws in the Finals.
The Blue Eagles also had 13-1 records in Seasons 71 and 72, with the losses coming in the middle of the season against FEU and UP respectively. They won the championship on both seasons – the first two of their historic five-peat.
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Ateneo is still favored to win the championship this year.
All throughout the season they were seen to be in a level above the other teams, having an average winning margin of 18.77 points in their first 13 games, including a 50-point win against UST.
But with UP breaking their streak tonight, it showed that they are not invincible. That they can be defeated.
The 84 points UP scored was the most Ateneo allowed in 14 games this year. The second-most, 81 points, was also against UP during their first game of the season.
But UP wasn’t just good offensively. They also played great defense.
In today’s game, UP limited Ateneo to only six made three pointers out of 19 attempts. Both season lows for the Blue Eagles.
Ateneo’s bench production was also limited to 16 points, another season low. Before today’s game, their reserves were averaging 36.92 points per game.
The Blue Eagles were able to catch-up after being down by as much as 18 points. But the Fighting Maroons made big shots and big defensive stops during the end game.
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39-0.
The streak was bound to end someday. And what a way for it to end.
Ateneo now prepares to face an FEU team who for sure took down notes on how to beat them. UP on the other hand will have a twice-to-beat advantage against DLSU in the Final Four.
One streak has ended, but Ateneo Blue Eagles still has a chance to continue their other streak.
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// by Francis Abad
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