HOW do you stop Ateneo?
Well, it's a problem that no UAAP team has been able to solve for the Blue Eagles' last 36 league games - a stretch spanning 1,289 days to be exact.
This UAAP Season 84, all seven teams got their crack at the mighty Blue Eagles [La Salle, UST and UE actually had two shots at it] but the result has been the same.
The most frustrating part for foes is that this squad is no one-trick pony. Ateneo is ready to light the scoreboards up when it's on a rhythm while also fearless to go down and dirty when push comes to shove.
Of course, Ateneo coach Tab Baldwin won't give anything away on what makes the Blue Eagles hum like a well-oiled muscle machine.
"It's up to the other coach. If they think that's a good way, a good page to take out of the book, then we just need to make adjustments and make sure we don't fall in the same traps again," he said.
Spin.ph now takes a shot at solving this blue puzzle and zoomed in on the facets of the game which teams could look at the next chance they take their swing at Ateneo.

Win the boards
The team who controls the boards controls the game, so they say.
And Ateneo, unsurprisingly, is one of the best rebounding teams this season.
The Blue Eagles hauled down an average of 46.88 rebounds through eight games to rank second in the league and a big reason for that is Ange Kouame, who leads the league with his 11.88 boards per game.
But that hasn't always been the case in this campaign.
Far Eastern University was the first to show how integral those boards are to Ateneo's attack, keeping the game close thanks to its tireless work off both boards.
The Tamaraws won the rebounding battle, 49 to 42, in their first faceoff, including 19 offensive boards that translated into 11 second-chance points for the Morayta crew. Only the Blue Eagles' endgame poise enabled the Katipunan side to escape with a 79-70 win - the closest any team has come to beating them in the first round.
La Salle had a bit of a success in their second duel, taking 23 rebounds in the first half to Ateneo's 19 with Kouame only logging four minutes in the first two quarters. But the Green Archers could not exploit that advantage as the Blue Eagles' bench stepped up and kept the ship afloat en route to the 75-68 win.

Silence the snipers
No team has waxed hot from deep this season like Ateneo did, going head and shoulders above the field with its league-best 32.91-percent shooting through eight games. As a team, the Blue Eagles are making 9.75 threes per game.
In the rare times that they shot below par, the games have been very competitive.
In their first-round meeting, La Salle held Ateneo to 7-of-24 shooting from rainbow country, a mere 29-percent. The problem, though, was that the the Green Archers paid dearly for their 16 turnovers, which the Blue Eagles turned into 15 points en route to the 74-57 win.
Ateneo shot only 9-of-32 from distance (28-percent) against University of the East, allowing the Recto side to surprisingly keep in step with the Katipunan champions in the first half. However, the Blue Eagles attacked in the paint and were rewarded with 34 free throws and made 21.
National University's defense also held Ateneo to a 9-of-29 (31-percent) from threes, while also limiting the Blue Eagles to just four points off the Bulldogs' 21 turnovers before losing a close one.
So if teams want to stay in step with Ateneo, they have to find a way to muffle those cannons.

Make the open shots
Teams must not only stop Ateneo from making its threes, they got to make theirs, too.
The Blue Eagles rank third-best in three-point field goals allowed, with foes only shooting 27.14-percent from beyond the arc.
UE shot way above its average in its game against Ateneo, hitting 13-of-36 from distance for a sky-high 36.1-percent to at least force the league leaders a moment to recalibrate.
The same was the case for UST which rallied from a 16-point first half deficit thanks to its 12-of-37 three-point shooting, including a 7-of-18 clip from deep in the second half to stay around before going down in defeat, 91-80. Their second-round meeting, however, wasn't close, with Ateneo blowing away the Tigers by 50 points.
Making those threes will be crucial for any opponent to space the floor, especially with the imposing presence of Kouame roaming down low for the Blue Eagles.

Weather the third-quarter storm
Ateneo won't be shy to go for the kill when the opportunity presents itself, and this season, the third quarter has been one of its main weapons, outscoring teams by an average of 6.25 points in the third frame.
Adamson learned about that the hard way. Already down by 12 at the half, the Blue Eagles came out of the halftime break and won the third quarter by eight points to run away and post the 31-point mugging, 78-47.
UE also had to endure the same plight that after a tied first half, Ateneo poured 10 more points in the third period to come away with the 22-point victory, 94-72.
But there are also those who held strong.
Trailing by eight at the half, NU remained relentless and did not allow Ateneo to break away in the third period. So did UST, which kept itself in step in the third period before making its run in the fourth.
Deflating as those third quarter runs may be, it's important for teams aiming to score the upset to not get too down and just keep on fighting.

Strong finishing kick
It's not just how you start, but how you finish.
Ateneo has never trailed heading to the fourth quarter, which puts it at a vulnerable position to fall into the traps of complacency - an issue Baldwin has time and again warned his wards about.
Unfortunately, that hasn't always been the case.
UST shot its way back in the game against Ateneo and also capitalized on the Blue Eagles' 10 turnovers, flipping those to 13 points to its part. What was supposed to be a blowout ended in just a toughly contested 11-point spread for Ateneo, 91-80.
La Salle, in their second meeting of the season, also got its act together after falling behind by 13 entering the final frame, forcing six turnovers and scoring four to lose by just seven.
NU also had its chance. But down by just eight entering the fourth, the Bulldogs' offense sputtered when it mattered most.
The lesson is simple: teams must keep Ateneo within sight long enough for their main men - may it be Justine Baltazar for La Salle, Sherwin Concepcion for UST, John Lloyd Clemente of NU, and even the likes of FEU's RJ Abarrientos or UP's Zavier Lucero - to take charge and finish the game with a flourish.
Easy to say, right? But hard to do.
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