BEFORE the Blue Eagles and Green Archers buckled down to work inside the Araneta Coliseum, business went brisk outside the Big Dome hours before the big showdown.

                One booth sold “Gang Green” T-shirts, obviously for De La Salle fans, and another sold blue ones, of course, for Ateneo die-hards.

                Rain Galvez, a stall owner at the Araneta Green Game, sold De La Salle T-shirts at P300 apiece. He also has umbrellas and notebooks, all green, in his inventory.

                “Malakas na rin ang benta pero mas marami ngayon dahil finals at Ateneo-La Salle pa,” said Galvez. “We have 5,000 shirts to be sold.”

                Galvez said 10 percent of the sales would go to La Salle groups, one of them the Animo Squad.

                The pro-Ateneo stall sold T-shirts at P350. But players’ numbers and names were also printed on the shirts’ backs. The sales clerk vowed business is as brisk as their rival on the other side.

                Restaurants and coffee shops circling the Big Dome also made a killing because fans came hours before the 4 p.m. Game One.

                Police visibility was also more than usual. The police were after the usual petty criminals, and of course, scalpers.  

***** 

One more win for Eaglets

ATENEO was lethal from the three-point line to take Game One of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines’ (UAAP) Season 71 juniors basketball championship series.

                The Blue Eaglets defeated Far Eastern University-Nicanor Reyes Educational Foundation (FEU-FERN), 72-62, Saturday at The Arena in San Juan to move a win away from winning the plum. They go for the sweep 3 p.m. on Saturday, also at The Arena.

                Ian Enriquez led the Blue Eaglets with 18 points. He was perfect seven-for-seven from the field. He also grabbed 17 rebounds and blocked two shots.

                But it was Juami Tiongson and Ael Banal who helped the Blue Eaglets pull away from the Baby Tamaraws. Banal knocked in two triples in a searing 13-0 run while Tiongson’s triple capped a second-quarter Ateneo blitz for a 36-27 halftime lead.

                Tiongson had 15 points on three-of-eight shooting from three-point distance, while Banal had 13 on four-of-eight from behind the arc. The Blue Eaglets shot a total eight-of-24 from that area.

                “At least we converted early pero medyo mababa pa rin iyon at saka hindi sunud-sunod,” said Ateneo coach Jamike Jarin. “They are playing zone defense. We had our shots pero they are always in their face.”

                The Blue Eaglets had a 51-36 advantage late in the third but the Baby Tamaraws of coach Horacio Lim made it a 66-60 game on a triple by Chris Tolomia with 1:49 left. But Kiefer Ravena finished off the Baby Tamaraws with a three-point play with only 1:08 remaining.

                “Hats off to coach Horacio and his boys. There was a chance that we could really get a big lead but knowing coach Horacio, the winner he is and the fighter that he is, napupunta sa mga players nila,” said Jarin.

Tolomia scored 18 points and grabbed eight rebounds while Arwin Albano had 11 points, eight rebounds and three blocks for the Baby Tamaraws. --Reuben Terrado 

***** 

FEU takes series opener

FAR Eastern University (FEU) survived a late rally by University of the Philippines (UP) to score a 54-52 victory on Saturday in Game One of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 71 women’s basketball best-of-three championship series at The Arena in San Juan.

                Bernadette Mercado finished with 13 points, three, assists and three steals for the Lady Tamaraws, while Love Miag-ao had eight points. Miag-ao scored six-straight points to end the first quarter with a 26-15 FEU lead, which it never relinquished.

                The Lady Maroons tried to bounce back as Camille Tomelde’s three-pointer capped a 9-2 run to make it just a two-point game for the Lady Tamaraws, 54-52, with 19.9 seconds left in the game. But the Lady Maroons failed to convert on the next possessions as the Lady Tamaraws took Game One.

                “Defense was the key,” said FEU coach Mike Oliver. “We are really fortunate to come out as winners. They played a very good offense down the stretch pero maganda iyong depensa namin for the last two possessions kaya na-maintain namin iyong two-point lead namin.”

                Game Two is scheduled on Saturday at 1 p.m. at The Arena with the Lady Tamaraws looking to sweep the women’s crown over their foes who were last year’s runners-up.

                Sai Sadorra contributed 17 points and 12 rebounds while Fatima Tolentino had 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Lady Maroons. Tomelden had seven markers. --Reuben Terrado

Rabeh, Eagles soar high

RABEH Al-Hussaini showed why he deserves the Most Valuable Player (MVP) trophy.

T-shirt business a hit in dream finals showdown

BEFORE the Blue Eagles and Green Archers buckled down to work inside the Araneta Coliseum, business went brisk outside the Big Dome hours before the big showdown.

Cardinals, Lions in do-or-die tiff

MAPUA tries to complete a mammoth upset and advance into its first finals appearance in 17 years as it goes up against defending champion and top seed San Beda in a do-or-die Final Four match in the 84th National Collegiate Athletic Association men’s basketball tournament today at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City.

Orcollo pockets Guinness title

WORLD No. 1 Dennis Orcollo manhandled archrival Yang Ching-shun, 9-1, in the semifinals and then subdued another Taiwanese, Wang Hng-shiang, 11-9, in the finals to rule the penultimate leg of the Guinness 9-Ball Tour 2008 on Sunday at the Garden Hotel in Guangzhou, China.

Bleachers’ Brew: Behind the spotlight

AWAY from the glitz of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), basketball isn’t all that crap that has turned the game into a slum book for Multiply or Facebook.