INQUIRER Sports

MANILA, Philippines—If the UAAP finale has taught Ateneo de Manila University anything over the years, it’s the prudence not to rush for a victory celebration.

For the second time in three seasons, the Blue Eagles moved within reach of the men’s basketball title after forging a 69-61 Game 1 triumph over arch nemesis De La Salle University Green Archers last Sunday.

But prompt reminders came from coach Norman Black following the blockbuster victory that also validated the star status of Ateneo center Rabeh Al-Hussaini.

“I cautioned him and my team that our business is unfinished,” said Black. “It’s only one game. We still have to win one more to become champions.”

Just two years ago, the Eagles came close to capturing their fourth overall crown before the University of Santo Tomas Tigers unexpectedly pulled off back-to-back wins to snatch the 2006 title.

And for coach Franz Pumaren, there’s no question that his defending champion Archers also have the wares and the wisdom to equalize the best-of-three Finals series.

“I’m confident that we can still bounce back Thursday,” said Pumaren after his Archers yielded to the Eagles for the third straight time this season.

“We are still OK. We are used to this kind of situation. We forced [the Eagles] to commit turnovers, but the problem is we could not get our shots in.”

Although early foul troubles sidelined Ateneo’s top gunner Chris Tiu, Al-Hussaini proved too much for the Archers in the second half to finish with 31 points and nine rebounds.

“[The Archers] are definitely capable of beating us, but that’s not our focus,” said Black. “Our focus is to win the championship, which means we have to beat them one more time.”

Al-Hussaini, a cinch for the MVP award, said that a lot of intangibles came into play in the Finals opener.

“We played good defense, but we also played with a lot of heart,” the 6-foot-6 Al-Hussaini said. “I want to win the championship. I’m not even thinking about the award, it’s just a bonus.”

The excitement on whether the Eagles will bag the crown or the Archers will push the series to a decider in Game 2 again reached fever pitch Monday.

Over at the Araneta Coliseum ticket booth, the same scenario played out as last week with tickets running out in just over two hours.

With people camping at the venue right after Game 1 for the 9 a.m. ticket selling, the long queues turned chaotic early morning Monday, forcing the venue security and operations to require those in line to present Ateneo and La Salle identification cards.