On August 2022, the Ateneo Blue Eagles were crowned champions in Rakuten Sports’ first-ever World University Basketball Series behind a team of veterans led by Ange Kouame, Dave Ildefonso, and team captain BJ Andrade.
At that time, Chris Koon had just wrapped up his first season in the UAAP; Kai Ballungay was about to begin his first one; and Sean Quitevis was only starting to find his place in the team and in coach Tab Baldwin's system.
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This time around?
Well, none of those veterans will be around when the Blue Eagles defend their crown, leaving Koon, Ballungay and Quitevis to lead from the front for a much younger team that has 10 rookies in its pool.
Baldwin is no stranger to developing players into championship contenders. He has done this throughout his almost eight years with Ateneo. Now he needs to work his magic again on this youth-laden group to sustain the Blue Eagles' success.

“Something that’s a little bit unique about this season is not just how many rookies we have, but also, our seasoned players are really only one or two years in," said the former Gilas Pilipinas coach.
"We don’t lack talent, we’ve got talented guys that were recruited by a lot of schools; but we really lack an awareness and an understanding of what the UAAP brings in terms of its competitive personality.
"All of these new players, young players, have to adapt to that and they’re gonna have to adapt under fire because we don't necessarily have enough veteran players to cover all the minutes," Baldwin added.
To toughen the team up, the reigning UAAP men's basketball champions will be heading back to Japan with the goal of winning back-to-back championships in the World University Basketball Series.
The Blue Eagles will be going up against seven other college teams from the United States, Taiwan, Korea, Australia, Indonesia, and Japan in the tournament slated in Shibuya Tokyo from August 10 to 13.
Ateneo makes its debut in a match against select Japanese players, followed by a match against the University of Sydney.
In support of the team’s championship bid, SM Cinema has partnered with Rakuten Sports to bring the WUBS games to the big screen. SM will be showing Ateneo’s matches in 12 cinemas across the Philippines, both in Regular and Director’s Club format.
For those who would like to purchase tickets to the SM Cinema screenings, they can get from this link. Ticket prices range from PHP 500-750.
This is the first time that SM Cinema will be screening live basketball, and the team is excited about it.
“I just heard about the screening and it’s honestly an amazing experience. As a fan of basketball, I would love to be in the cinemas and watching the games," said Quitevis.
"That excites us as players, knowing that we have their support, and our community is a big part and a big reason why we play. It’s gonna add a lot more motivation on top of what we already have, knowing that we have our fans at our backs."
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