By Nikolai Ordoña and Paulo Diesta

Student-athletes from the Ateneo Senior High School (ASHS) won against St. Bridget School in girls’ basketball in the season-opener for the Athletic Association of Private Schools (AAPS), scoring 54-17.

During the recently held event last January 13, the Ateneo Blue Eagles Girls’ Basketball team made a statement with a huge 37-point margin of victory to cap off the first game held at Claret School of Quezon City.

1st Quarter

A whistle signified the start of the match, wherein players of St. Bridget School got first possession of the ball. As they drove for the point, they were met with a tight defense from Ateneo, which proved difficult for them to convert into a scoring opportunity.

Within the first two minutes, players from both teams scrambled for the ball on opposite ends of the court, resulting in a back-and-forth offense and defense play.

Shortly afterward, good ball movement was shown by the St. Bridget players, scoring their first lay-up. The Ateneo Blue Eagles countered with a shot of their own. 

As a response, they rushed towards the three-point line, and drained their first three of the game, which put them up 5-2. 

It was a competitive start, as both teams came out draining shots from within and beyond the arc. During this exchange, Ateneo eventually got the better of the St. Bridget players as they slowly racked up lay-ups; with the score now listed at 10-6, Ateneo clinched a lead.

Players of St. Bridget were not able to convert their shots as Ateneo kept their momentum and drained a mid-range shot. To end the quarter, a turnover led to a fast break opportunity for the Blue Eagles towards a lay-up. The buzzer rang, and the current score stood at 16-6 in favor of Ateneo.

2nd Quarter

Once the second quarter began, St. Bridget looked to come back with a well-placed reverse lay-up. They were also given a few free throw opportunities, making one out of two. 

Afterward, Ateneo scored six straight points quickly and extended their lead to 22-9. Another fast break led to them scoring a lay-up and drawing a foul. 

In the final minutes of the second quarter, they exhibited good ball movement to score two shots in a row and placed the score at 27-9.

3rd Quarter

At the start of the third quarter, players of St. Bridget scored a lay-up, 27-11. Immediately after this shot, Ateneo rushed towards the opposite court and banked a lay-up of their own. 

Both teams missed a couple of shots in the next few minutes until Ateneo ended the drought with a floater.

They kept up with their momentum by scoring the following nine points from bouncing shots using the board, as well as draining mid-range jumpers. The buzzer signaled the end of the third, scoring 42-11 in favor of Ateneo.

4th Quarter

Despite the large deficit, St. Bridget maintained composure as they successfully scored off a fast break, 13-44. Ateneo answered with six straight points through jump shots, extending their lead to 50-13.

St. Bridget exhibited good defense when they disallowed Ateneo’s ball movement, which resulted in a turnover. They took advantage of this fast break and made the lay-up before Ateneo players started to catch-up.

However, Ateneo was able to adjust their defense to contain this late rally, ending the match with 54-17.

Post-match

As Ateneo made a statement by topping off a dominant 37-point win over St. Bridget, Ateneo Girls’ Basketball Coach PJ Navarro recounted the preparation the girls went through and his joy over their victory in the first game.

“We prepared for this game actually by practicing our defense…kasi ‘yung offense, they let them do it by themselves. Although mayroon akong pattern, but still, sila nagde-decide kung anong gagawin doon sa offense na iyon,” he said.

“I’m very happy for the girls. At least I’ve seen them do the stuff we’ve been doing [during] practice,” he added.

For their next games, Coach PJ aims to improve the team’s transition from offense to defense, practicing more to give the players experience.

In the same post-match interview, team captain and lead scorer Lauren Lopez sounded off on her team’s stellar performance.

“Everyone was so happy because everyone got a chance to play and to contribute to the team. Winning this game means a lot for me and for our team, as the captain, I felt pressured to perform well and commit no mistakes on court,” she remarked.

In terms of overall ball movement and efficiency, Lopez highlights that they “spent a lot of time polishing the plays made by [the] coach,” reflecting their huge win against St. Bridget.

“We just prepared ourselves to be ready kahit sino pa yung kalaban namin… I just told them to apply whatever we have been doing in training and to just enjoy the game we all love,” Lopez added.

Even after sealing the game in dominant fashion, Lopez remains composed and points out that there is always still “room for improvement.”

“Kailangan pa namin ng more skills training and team chemistry. There will always be room for improvement even if you think you won or you think you are performing very well already,” she remarked.