ATENEO found itself in its hottest waters yet when National University threw its weight around and enforced a 17-point lead over the Blue Eagles on Saturday.
But rather than turning into the Bulldogs’ third win of the season, it turned into a game of revelations for the Louie Alas-coached squad.
The Blue Eagles proved that they have firepower outside of Kieffer Alas and Jared Bahay after breakout performances from the likes of Andrew Bongo, Shawn Tuano, Travis Roberts, and EJ Kapihe.
READ: Ateneo sends loudest statement yet by taking down NU
But more importantly, it showed exactly what the young Alas is made of and how he responded in what was turning out to be the worst game of his young collegiate career.
With the game hanging in the balance, the highly-touted rookie powered a 14-2 finishing kick — scoring 10 in that stretch to finish with a game-high 18 points as the Blue Eagles came away with an 87-76 win over the Bulldogs.
Prior to that explosion, the former UAAP Juniors MVP has only made three of his first 16 shots. But he knows his capabilities and the faith of the people around him.
“Like what my dad-slash-coach said. It's just in you,” the 19-year-old guard said. “That's where big time players are made. No matter [kung] bad game ka sa first, second, or third quarter.”
“As long as you just keep on going. And I guess the results show it in this fourth quarter.”
If there's someone who wasn't surprised with the guts and the sheer audacity of the former Batang Gilas standout — it's the man who watched him grow from a young player building foundations to the highly-touted baller he is today, Louie Alas.
“Talaga lang makapal ang mukha, no kidding aside,” coach Alas said.
“I told him that as long as it's not a bad shot, as long as you're free, go. Because that's your role to score.”
There's certainly still plenty of things to work on for this Ateneo side and one of its foundations in Kieffer Alas.
But the most important thing is the Blue Eagles are proving that they belong just as the ypung Alas continues to build more and more confidence as the team's closer when things get too close for comfort.
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