THE Ateneo Blue Eaglets shoot for the title when they face the Nazareth School-National Bullpups in Game 2 of their best-of-three finals series at 4 p.m. today at the Filoil Flying V Centre.
Coach Joe Silva said the team had at least eight months to prepare for a possible finals’ showdown with the Bullpups in the 80th University Athletic Association of the Philippines Junior Basketball Tournament.
“For the past 8 to 10 months, from the tryouts, we knew who to face already. So, we are prepared for NU,” said Silva.
Seven-foot-one slotman Kai Sotto is expected to be at his best again.
And that’s after he came up with his best game ever, a triple-double effort of 22 points, 16 rebounds and 11 blocks, on top of an assist during Ateneo’s 86-70 win over NU in Game 1.
“Araw-araw naming pinaghahandaan iyan. Wala nang kaba-kaba,” said Sotto, a Grade 9 student.
The Blue Eaglets are on a roll with 15 straight wins, including a 14-game sweep of the elimination round.
The Bullpups will need to find ways how to contain Ateneo ace guard SJ Belangel, who produced a solid all-around game of 17 points, eight assists, seven boards and five steals.
The Bullpups, who led by as much as 13 points before crumbling when Sotto entered the game midway in the opening period, need to take care of the ball, as they had 23 turnovers that last time.
Before the game, the league will award the individual winners, led by season MVP CJ Cansino of University of Santo Tomas at 3 p.m.