The Ateneo Blue Eagles. Photo from UAAP Media.MANILA — Ateneo de Manila University found a breath of fresh air in its clash against Adamson University during their UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball faceoff on Saturday.

READ: Ateneo gets breakthrough Season 87 win at Adamson’s expense

Entering the game with its worst start ever under the Tab Baldwin era at 0-3, and with veteran Chris Koon returning to the lineup after his ankle injury, the Blue Eagles suddenly played inspired basketball for the entirety of the bout to finally enter the win column of the present season. 

“We're obviously happy. The guys fought really hard. I’ve said that we’re a team that will have good patches and bad patches, and the fourth quarter was a really bad patch, but we survived,” Baldwin said during the postgame interviews at the Araneta Coliseum, pointing out what went well for them this time around. 

Ateneo — for the first time in Season 87 after three games — solved its third-quarter problems and outscored its opponents, 19-16, much to the delight of the former Gilas Pilipinas mentor. 

“We took care of our third quarter woes, at least for this game, and that was really refreshing and it made us feel a lot better by the fourth quarter,” he continued. 

But aside from the on-court adjustments that the Katipunan-based team applied last night at the Big Dome, it was the spirit of Ateneo’s past that injected some life into their campaign — the visit of the Blue Eagles, Band of Brothers. 

Angelo Kouame, Tyler Tio, Jason Credo, Dave Ildefonso, Mike Nieto, BJ Andrade, Raffy Verano, and Jacob Lao made their presence felt in the practice of their former squad earlier this week to provide some support for their fellow Blue Eagles, and Baldwin, who is at the forefront of BEBOB, admitted that witnessing this turned him sentimental. 

“The players coming in the other day was emotional, to see guys that I’ve been through so much with, you know, I love them,” bared the US-born Kiwi, who steered Ateneo to championships in 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2022 together with the aforementioned Blue Eagles alumni. 

“They’re very very special people, very special players. But I think the important thing was that they didn’t feel like the culture that we had worked so hard to establish from the Seasons 79 up to 84 eras was alive. They wanted the current team to understand a bit more about it from their perspective,” he continued. 

Meanwhile, Kristian Porter and Koon also offered their perspective on picking the brains of their Kuyas. 

“It’s different when previous BEBOB members come back and show their love. I experienced that first-hand as a rookie. I felt the BEBOB culture. I felt that they had my back and our backs. After that, I had eyes forward, knowing that no matter what happens, they’d be there for me. It’s their support that really helped me pull through,” said Porter, who was hailed as the player of the game with eight points, 10 rebounds, an assist, a steal, and a block. 

“All of us didn’t really know they were coming in, but we felt their presence. Each of them talked to us. We had the guys come in before in Season 85, but this was totally different, it was a different tone. It was tough for us because we didn’t really feel like anybody believed in us except ourselves, so it was great to have past players who still put that trust in us, still put that belief in us. They also gave us that challenge to exceed and live up to the standards of the BEBOB culture,” offered Koon.

Ateneo’s Chris Koon and Tab Baldwin. Photo from UAAP Media.Baldwin agreed with the latter part of Koon’s sentiments, saying that the BEBOB’s visit presence is not merely to express their support, but also to push forward the present batch of Blue Eagles to perform to their capabilities. 

“These guys can say it was nice to have them there and to feel the support, but there was absolutely pressure put on them by the former players. There were some very strong statements about how a Blue Eagle conducts himself on the court, on the bench, in front of the camera,” said Coach Tab. 

“I was really proud watching these young men stand up for something that is special. I think that fighting spirit you say today in the fourth quarter when things weren’t going well, these guys were still fighting their hearts out. So, it’s a great edification of that visit and how we play the game from an emotional standpoint,” he added. 

Up next for Ateneo is Far Eastern University whom they will be facing on Sunday, September 29, at 6:30 p.m., and Baldwin is hoping that the tough stand that they put up against Adamson as well as the magic of BEBOB will not be seen for one game only. 

“It’s good to get a win, we obviously always want better performances, but you know, we’ll take this one and look forward next week to FEU knowing it’s gonna be tough. They’re very desperate, and we obviously can’t be anything but desperate if we wanna get serious about climbing the ladder,” he said.