FINALS Thirdy once again struck, and that left a warpath for Ateneo in the form of a 91-77 beatdown of University of Santo Tomas in Game One of the UAAP Season 82 men's basketball Finals.
Thirdy Ravena could not be stopped on his way to a season-high 32 points on a 14-of-18 clip from the field to lead the Blue Eagles while leaving his counterparts in the Growling Tigers flustered.
But as much as the second-generation star got the spotlight in the series opener, UST coach Aldin Ayo insisted that his side couldn't focus solely on defending Ravena alone.
"It's not about Thirdy eh," he said, with him meeting Ateneo for the third time in the championship series, the first two when he was still in La Salle. "Ngayon, nandoon yung points ni Thirdy because of our (poor) transition defense. He played well."
Ayo has kept a close eye on Ravena, yet he knows that solving that puzzle wouldn't address the problem as a whole, fully aware of the strength of this Blue Eagles side.
That was the case again in Game One, as Ateneo shot 52-percent from the field and dished out 19 assists in what was one of the most excellent performances of this crew this year.
"If we want to stop them, we'll have to stop the whole team. If you focus on Thirdy only, the other guys will step up also," said Ayo, who also gave focus on Ange Kouame, who fired 18 points and 12 rebounds, and SJ Belangel, who shot all of his 12 points from deep.
But Ayo acknowledges that of those defensive assignments, Ravena does necessitate an added attention -- one he hopes the Growling Tigers achieve on Wednesday's Game Two.
"Hopefully, we can cover him on Wednesday," he said.
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