ATENEO captain Sean Quitevis steered the reigning champions to what might just be their most important win of UAAP Season 86 to date.
Quitevis' 12 points and eight boards, including a pair of clutch free throws, shone through in a thrilling come-from-behind win over Adamson that gave the Blue Eagles the inside track on the last spot in the Final Four.
READ: Sean Quitevis takes charge as Ateneo defeats Adamson to boost semis bid
Difficult as the season has been for the Blue Eagles, the Ateneo skipper underscored how the team made a lot of strides building its character in the course of the campaign.
"I think the character that our team showed today is some growth. We knew the story of the first round against this team and we were highly emphasizing that on every huddle, every timeout, in halftime," said Quitevis.
"We just wanted to show that we’ve grown from that situation and there are bigger steps to take forward, but we’re happy with our character today," he added.
The time is now for Ateneo, says Quitevis
Ateneo might have kept its Final Four bid afloat for the time being, but Quitevis underscored how their A-game as a team shouldn't have to wait until the Final Four before being fully unleashed.
"I just tried to reinforce to the team that we’re not waiting on the Final Four. To us, this is already our playoffs — every game is just as big and we treat it that way.
"To us, it was really important to stick to our defensive principles in this game. We’re looking at these stats but I’m more interested in looking at our own hard stats. That’s really a true testament to how we performed as a team. I think that’s more important than this to us (stat sheet) right now," Quitevis stressed.
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