By Soleina Vasquez

The Ateneo Blue Eagles asserted their presence early in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 88 Boys’ Basketball Tournament, opening their campaign with a 91–84 win over the University of the East (UE) Junior Red Warriors at the Blue Eagle Gym on Sunday, January 11.

Jude Eriobu led the charge for the Blue and White with a commanding 28-point and 14-rebound performance complemented by two assists and four blocks, while Noah Banal and Unri Madrangca delivered 14 points each to bolster Ateneo’s balanced attack.

The Blue Eagles absorbed UE’s early three-point burst in the first quarter before answering with triples from Madrangca and Banal and interior finishes from Eriobu to stay within striking distance, 27–24.

Ateneo began to dictate tempo in the second quarter as Eriobu sliced through defenders, Ziv Espinas converted an acrobatic drive, and Renzo Gatmaitan scored off rebounds to push Ateneo ahead, 48–41, at halftime.

The Junior Warriors threatened in the third period, cutting the lead to one, but Ateneo responded with back-to-back threes from Madrangca, a clutch triple from Banal, and Jay M Leal’s finish inside to regain separation, 68–59.

Ateneo looked in control early in the fourth quarter as baskets from Eriobu and consecutive three-pointers from Gatmaitan and Espinas stretched the lead to 15, 76–61.

UE mounted a late rally behind perimeter shooting, but the Blue Eagles answered with Madrangca’s corner three, Eriobu’s free throws, and Banal’s steal-and-layup sequence to ice the contest.

“Stepping into this game, we just wanted to win talaga and one of our motivations was our teammate who suffered an injury during preseason — si Fonso,” co-captain Renzo Gatmaitan said.

Alfonso “Fonso” Tan, the Blue Eagles’ supposed team captain for Season 88, was sidelined for the remainder of the athletic year after suffering an ACL tear during the AsiaBasket tournament.

Gatmaitan said their mentality as a team evolved, starting with the veterans and carrying over to the rookies. “As long as we continue playing like this and keeping the same energy, we would be fine all throughout the season,” he added.

The Ateneo Blue Eagles will look to build on their opening-day momentum as they face Far Eastern University-Diliman (FEU-D) in their matchup on Wednesday, January 14, at the Playtime FilOil Centre.