Ang Sarap Maging Atenista 4x

Talk about a season for the ages. 

13-1 elimination round record. 2 blue chip rookies in the mythical five. A PHENOMenal rookie of the year. Championship games = blowouts. A finals MVP who shot 78% from the field. And of course, a fourth straight championship.

Most people outside of the community either admire or get irritated with the way Ateneans these days bring that swag of being the champs of the UAAP. Even though I didn't end up studying at the LS for college, I maintained that same irritating passion for the team despite studying in UP. 

Why?

More than just spending 12 years of my life in blue, I was already in Grade School when it was the sports program's so-called "dark ages". There was a time when having a competitive game against the likes of the late 90's Archers or Growling Tigers was already a stretch. There was a time when Ateneo was almost a bottom dweller. Heck, I only knew about the Final Four format when Ateneo got pretty competitive in the year 2001 and were challengers for the UAAP plum. It was that bad.  

Who could not forget the time when the Joe Lipa-coached Blue Eagles were trounced by the Archers in 2001. That did sting so much as it piled on some frustration and who wants to lose a championship series to your arch-rivals? But at the same time, it was the start of a new era. Take note: that season became the third of a string of 13 straight Final Four appearances - wherein Ateneo was always at least a 3rd seed.

Since 2001, the team went to the finals 6 times and won 5 times. Talk about a high batting rate.

Coming from last year's considerably improbable championship (given that the team lost Rabeh, Nonoy and Jai all in the same year), Ateneans were in a giddy when the team recruited the likes of Greg Slaughter and Kiefer Ravena. Basically, it was championship or bust.

Thankfully, they did deliver. 

Ladies and Gentlemen, your FOUR PEAT UAAP MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONS.

Back in championship form

(photo from http://ph.news.yahoo.com/blogs/collegehoops/salva-tion-salva-explodes-eagles-crush-tams-104346302.html)

Ateneo went back to business today with a big win against the FEU Tamaraws. Despite 'struggling' in the past two games - as exaggerated by the media (yes you, TJ Manotoc), the blue eagles showed how they haven't lost any of their championship mojo. The guys played with so much composure despite a tight first half. Looking forward for them to close it out this Tuesday.

ONE BIG FIGHT!

The scores:

ATENEO 82 – Salva 24, Ravena 17, Slaughter 12, Monfort 11, Long 8, Erram 4, Tiongson 4, Chua 2, Gonzaga 0, Golla 0, Austria 0.

FEU 64 – Romeo 23, Escoto 12, Ramos 9, Garcia 6, Exciminiano 6, Tolomia 5, Pogoy 2, Cruz 1, Sentcheu 0, Bringas 0.

Quarters: 14-19; 33-33; 60-49; 82-64

Alex Nuyles playing for Ateneo??

After that monster game against my blue eagles, I've gained much more respect for Adamson's Alex Nuyles. His heart for his alma mater and for the game is undoubtedly at full swing. I wouldn't complain if he beat Greg for league MVP.

But wait, did he really play for Ateneo? Read the interesting story here.

UAAP Season 74 Play of the Year

UAAP S74 - Kiefer Ravena's No-Look Pass for Nico... by coldbluestar

One Big Fight

It was a last minute decision to watch this game. Almost regretted watching because I had to park so far from the Big Dome, almost didn't get a decent ticket and boy, did the real FEU team show up. That was all in my mind with 1 minute left in the game and Ateneo was down 6 points after reigning MVP nailed a dagger 3 from the corner.

But thanks to Sir Erick Salonga, I got an Upper A ticket, ended up seated right smack in the middle of the coliseum and watched one of the wildest comebacks in UAAP history.

One for the books. I'm just thankful I got to witness this miracle win.

The GUIDON – One year off: Ryan Buenafe’s mea culpa

The GUIDON – One year off: Ryan Buenafe’s mea culpa

Battle of Katipunan 2011 Edition

It brings great pride and honor whenever UP and Ateneo take the spotlight at any stage. Coming from both schools, I can't deny how proud I am to be an alumnus of arguably the top two schools in the country.

When it comes to basketball, I've been a big fan of the Blue and White since I was probably 6 years old. Watching UAAP games isn't something new to me so WIN or LOSE, I'll be right there cheering for the Hail Mary Squad. So please don't be surprised if you see biased comments on this blog. Sometimes I get carried away!

Now that I'm also part of the Maroon side of things, I had to be creative. So for the Battle of Katipunan, I wore my PE uniform from way back in High School that was maroon! :P Cool huh?

Watching a game between these two schools can be stressful. Don't know who to cheer for. Whenever Ateneo executes oh so flawlessly, can't help but be proud! Whenever the Maroons fight hard and catch up with the lead, can't help but hope for the best! Nevertheless I observed the game a lot (77-57 for Ateneo) and here are my thoughts:

photo from goateneo.com

1. Ateneo is on top but the team still has long ways to go.

The Eagles boasts of the best combination of rookies, transferees and holdovers in years. A lot of attention has been given to Kiefer Ravena and Greg Slaughter but analysts actually highlight the fact that the trio of Salva, Long and Monfort has been as formidable as any Big Three in the league - averaging 12-10-8 ppg respectively. In this particular game, all five starters had double figure scoring - with the 17-year old Ravena top scoring for the game with 15 points.

Yes, Ateneo definitely showed that its a class of its own - weathering the Diliman explosion early in the game. Ateneo showed a lot of discipline in playing defense and being organized on offense. Screens, decoys, re-posts - they did it almost mechanically.

But had the game been against top caliber team, Ateneo would have had a hard time winning. Why? Because for one, the bench hasn't been performing - even choking at times. Whenever Coach Norman cleared the starters off the floor, it takes a lot of time for Ateneo's 2nd stringers to settle in as a line up. Erram/Chua + Oping + Bacon + Gonzaga + Tiongson - not bad huh? And two, Kiefer and Greg still need to improve. They have not shown their true potential as of yet.

The Blue Eagles have yet to show their Championship form.

2. The UP Fighting Maroons isn't all about Mike Silungan

You guys might think that this is a knock on Mike - whose potential UP is banking on. This guy shot the lights out when he played in the summer leagues a year ago. But now, the team has a solid point guard in former Eaglet Mike Gamboa, Super Soph Jett Manuel and transferee Jelo Montecastro. Combine this with Mbah's presence inside and the leadership of Captain Miggy Maniego (who's actually a former classmate back in Ateneo Grade School), and we've got ourselves a solid team.

I'm not saying that his team is contending for a Final Four slot. I hate to say it but the Fighting Maroons need to mature under a system. It sounds like a oft-used excuse - considering the fact that the Woody Co-Martin Reyes-Migs De Asis era ended with a 0-14 season. But then again, they had 3 or 4 coaches in a span of 5 seasons.

This is why these Maroons need to buy into Ricky Dandan's system and flourish as a team. What I see is they're having a hard time executing plays and end up playing isolation. A lot of forced shots and mishandled possessions.

I'm projecting a late season run for these Diliman boys. A 4-10 record is pretty much possible. UP fight!

3. Greg is like pre-championship Pau Gasol

Tall. Skillful. but very SOFT.

I'm saying this because I don't want him to end up like EJ Feihl - who was more known for dominating just because of his height. Greg has a lot of upside but if there is one thing that he needs to improve on - its on toughness. Even if he scored 14 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, he didn't dominate. He freakin' shoots like a lady. He was even blocked by Mbah during the first quarter.

On the defensive end, he was blocking and changing shots here and there but he wasn't as active. He was letting small guys blow by him for easy fastbreak layups. Again, he didn't really dominate per se.

Now I know why he didn't end up on the final roster of Smart Gilas despite his size.

Good thing is he's buying into Norman Black's system - where the team concept is heavily preached. It's not like the team dumps the ball to Greg then let's see what happens. You'll see how he looks for the right time to post up, shoot, pass or even dribble.

I'm just waiting for this guy to peak. Wait for him to run up and down the floor just like Rabeh. He finishes well. There's a reason why other teams envy how Ateneo develops their big men.

4. The effects of two 0-14 seasons in 4 years is just bad for any team

I like the fact that the Maroons have been playing their hearts out every single game. I see the effort and determination. One thing is that when the team is pounded by a superior squad, sometimes you can see some signs of discouragement.

What's worse is that fans have tagged the team as perennial bottom-dwellers. When UP led the game early on, people were jumping up and down as if the team has won. Some fans even took pictures of the scoreboard - because they all thought it would not happen after a long time and Ateneo will catch up sooner or later.

It's just sad but true. I'm hoping that the Fighting Maroons break out of this slump - similar to how NU is now tagged as the league's darkhorse.

5. There's a lot of respect between UP and Ateneo

There's a reason why games between these two schools is called the Battle of Katipunan. Despite the obvious gap in basketball, their games are always easy to market and well-attended. For one, there's that age-old rivalry in terms of academics. Yeah, you can always debate which school is better and all that. Most of them will say it's UP but I'd beg to disagree as both schools are pretty much top-caliber and has their own strengths and weaknesses.

Just in case you didn't notice, a lot of Eaglets have ended up playing for the Maroons. Mike Gamboa used to rule the Juniors division with Bacon Austria. Paolo Romero used to shine along side Kiefer and Von Pessumal. Martin Pascual, I heard, came from the AHS Prada team. Mikee Reyes and Miggy Maniego used to strut it out for the AGS basketball teams. *got these facts straightened out from http://hoopnut.blogspot.com/2011/07/games-that-play-us-first-five.html *

For some reason, UP and Ateneo games are always interesting. Best of luck to both teams!

One Big Fight! UP Fight!

Phenom Dunk

Still not sold on Kiefer? Take a look at this!

Aaron Atayde put it best. "Yung ginagawa nya sa Juniors, ginagawa nya rin sa Seniors."

He used to dominate the Juniors division this way. 1 year detached from High School basketball, he's slowly dominating the Seniors division as well!

Watch the video here: http://yfrog.com/mbvd0z

Overhyped?

Photo from: http://www.interaksyon.com/interaktv/five-things-we-learned-after-ateneos-round-one-defeat-of-la-salle

The Phenom has arrived.

Check his stat line: 24 points (22 in the first half), 10 rebounds, 4 assists and 5 steals. He torched Simon Atkins for god's sake.

Overhyped? I don't think so.

Truth about college ball

They say that in college basketball, you've only got 4 or 5 years to play and you're done. After that, you either move on to the pros or pursue a career outside of sports. That's one harsh reality - you don't have franchise players who can stay for the rest of their careers/lives. This is one of the reasons why college ball is so competitive and full of school spirit.

I watched the Ateneo game today against Adamson, which by the way was won by the Katipunan team with 7-foot slotman Greg Slaughter anchoring the Eagles. Before the game, key losses to the team were discussed - like the graduation of Erik Salamat and Jumbo Escueta, Ryan Buenafe sitting out and Art Dela Cruz transferring to San Beda. During the game, even if it was an ugly one, with both teams struggling towards the end, these losses were not as evident because of the stellar play of Greg - thus, the win.

But another thing was very evident. Ateneo had a new courtside reporter. Nothing against Jaz Reyes, but Jessica Mendoza has unfortunately used up her "eligibility".

When the role "courtside reporter" comes to mind, three names come to mind, Patty Laurel, Lia Cruz and ofcourse, Jessica Mendoza. These girls have definitely captured the attention of not just Ateneo fans but by the other schools as well. They have provided the blue-print for courtside reporting - and have all moved on to careers in broadcasting.

photo from iggyesque.multiply.com

Jessica Mendoza has definitely lived up to exceedingly high expectations to the delight of all UAAP fans. She even spent 2 years doing this for the Ateneo!

photo from Jessica Mendoza Facebook Fan Page

Jessica, you will be missed.

Repost: 12 on the 12th - Ateneo wins its first title of 2011

Text and photos by Rick Olivares (Source: http://www.ateneo.edu/index.php?p=120&type=2&sec=27&aid=9954)

Sometimes I wondered if the stories I used to hear from the adult folk were war stories. Yep, war stories not sports ones.

As a kid in the Ateneo Grade School, the first sport you ever play is football and that explains this eternal fixation with the beautiful game. Baseball, I inherited from my grandfather and I played it extensively all the way to first year college.

Hoops. Now that was something I heard about when my dad, his classmates, friends, and officemates gathered around a case of beer and whatnot. I never really played it until well after college.

One of my dad’s best friends was a red-blooded Bedan. My Tito Ramon went to school in Mendiola for his entire school life. Plus, he was a cheerleader. That meant he saw the entire ruckus up front.

When people talk about Ateneo-San Beda games (it’s usually the 1960s & 70s NCAA matches because they were around for those), it’s many things --- Caloy Loyzaga, Rusty Cacho, three-peat after three-peat, rumbles, broken windshields, and well, more rumbles. Sometimes even school officials joined the fray! Imagine that.

For me, what comes to mind is 1977. It’s as if 1975 and 76 – back-to-back title years for the Blue Eagles in the old NCAA in case you were born yesterday – never happened. Some people, including those on the Ateneo team who played in 1977, live in a time warp.

The loss, in a closed-door match at the Araneta Coliseum, remains a painful memory and even overshadows the back-to-back crowns. In recent years, I sat down with many players from both sides who participated in the finals of that year. For the Bedans, it was a huge victory as they time and again kept the Ateneans from replicating a three-peat. For the Ateneans, some shake their heads at it while ruing the time when three players were on national duty. That game was against San Beda. It was the one loss in the elims. Had they swept it then it was bonfire time. Instead, it went to a finals series where Ateneo lost in the final seconds of play.

I’ve seen the game tape and when I think of that match, I always see Pons Valdez with his head hung low and Padim Israel sitting on the floor in shock.

So, much is made about the first finals meeting in a tournament between the two college teams since that year.

Heading into the Filoil Flying V Premier Cup championship match at the San Juan Arena, aside from all the flotsam of other people’s memories, I thought of two other things, oddly, an Ateneo-Letran match way back in 1987, and the first match of this year’s same Filoil tourney.

Now what does an Ateneo-Letran game over 20 years ago have to do with Ateneo-San Beda? Well, after both squads won their respective league titles in 1987 (Letran was led by Dong Libed and Jing Ruiz who is an assistant now to Leo Austria in Adamson), they met in the Reunion of Champions at the ULTRA. At that time, Ateneo and Letran was number one and two respectively in total NCAA hoops crowns and they had not met in a long time.

The game was over after a four minutes as the Blue Eagles dropped a 14-0 bomb on Letran. The Knights never got close.

When the current boys in blue and white opened their summer campaign, they faced off against the lads in red and white. The result was a heart-stopping win over San Beda in the final play with Kiefer Ravena and Greg Slaughter starring in the win.

Once more, this time in the final game of the summer, the two teams met and it’s for a title. Since the end of last season’s college wars, people have been trying to get the two to meet in a battle of champions. It never materialized for one reason or another. But I guess some things are fated to happen.

In a way, both squads weren’t whole. San Beda was missing Sudan Daniel and Anthony Semerad while Ateneo lost newbie Mark Tallo who went home disgusted after the lack of playing time. They were also tired having played several games over the past few days including a loss to NU in the semifinals of the Fr. Martin Cup the day before.

But no matter. They were here to play.

If you think the Blue Eagles played their best basketball against FEU in the semis, this time around, they played great on both sides of the court for the first time all summer.

After the first eight minutes of the game and the score at 21-6 in favor of Ateneo, I thought of the Ateneo-Letran game of long ago. Then-center Alex Araneta, Ateneo’s second-string center hit some huge shots in the early goings of the game before Letran sued for time. Cut to today, Kirk Long shadowed gunner Garvo Lanete enough to find out his deodorant brand and Greg Slaughter outmuscled Ola Adeogun inside. With outside-inside combo initially stopped, it was up to Dave Marcelo to get the Red Lions on the board.

He did but didn’t get much help. The cushion in the meantime was large enough to fend off the Bedan rally to come. After all, they had the weapons and talent to make it happen. But that first quarter was an incandescent one where almost every shot taken by Ateneo was in the flow. Everyone was in a zone offensively and defensively. That even caught Norman Black by surprise because they team felt flat in the last 15 minutes of the match against NU the day before. “We saved our energy for this,” he later quipped.

If there was anything that I thought would take the Blue Eagles out of their rhythm it was the bigs getting into foul trouble. Justin Chua picked up two quick ones and never returned. Ditto with Frank Golla, JP Erram, and Slaughter.

By the second quarter, SBC began to find their rhythm as Lanete and Adeogun, who reminds me of a young and raw Hakeem Olajuwon, chipped at the lead. And come halftime, they launched into a rousing rendition of the Indian Yell, perhaps the best yell in Philippine scholastic competition.

When the teams came out of their respective dugouts for the second half, the Red Lions had their game faces on. With their halftime show still ringing in their ears, the Bedans renewed their assault. After Dave Marcelo scored underneath, the score was 40-35.

When Slaughter went in for a two-handed stuff but was blocked from behind by Adeogun, the red army went nuts. Seated along the baseline. I looked at Greg’s face. He didn’t change his expression and instead ran back down on defense. I thought to myself, okay, he’s locked in and he’ll get back at Adeogun.

But it was Long who gave Ateneo breathing room when he nailed a triple at the apex of the rainbow for a 48-35 lead. I thought that Long struggled with his shooting throughout the summer and against the Tamaraws, it was his treys in the first quarter that propelled Ateneo to a lead they never surrendered.

Now that trey and two free throws later (after he got nailed by Lanete on the head ala Three Stooges out of frustration when Long poked the ball away for a turnover) put Ateneo up by 49-37. By third quarter’s end and the score at 54-41, I knew that the Blue Eagles had taken the best Red Lion chance of overhauling the deficit.

Looking at the Red Lions, I’ve seen them throttle teams en route to the finals. Now I could be wrong here but I think the missing pieces here (is not Sudan’s absence) are Rome de la Rosa and Kyle Pascual. Both have been turning up in a missing persons reports (sorry Coach Chot, I gotta borrow that).

In NCAA Season 86, I thought they were just as crucial to San Beda’s campaign. They turned in quality minutes and some great scoring sock. This summer, they’ve just not been there.

One guy who made an impact was Juami Tiongson. Gotta feel for the guy with all the hullaballoo about Ravena and Tallo coming in. Four point guards in the Blue Eagles lineup? I was beginning to worry that I might have to borrow La Salle coach Dindo Pumaren’s quip about his guard-laden team being a security guard agency. But Juami, the at-times forgotten Eagle, played great (apart from his eight-second backcourt violation). He made shots, was solid at QB, and he played great defense when Emman Monfort hobbled a bit. Juami had the second best stat line for the Eagles where he shot 50% from the field (4-8) and 100% from the line (4-4) while pulling down 5 boards and serving up 2 assists.

The best stat line, of course, was Greg’s. He scored 14 points, hauled – as in literally hauled them down over that crack Red Lions frontline of Adeogun, Marcelo, and Jake Pascual – down 11 boards to go with 2 assists and 1 block. That’s like a bucket for every two minutes on the floor so you know that his teammates are trying to work the ball over to him. When Greg rattled in that line drive from the right corner elbow with 3:18 left and Adeogun rushing out, I thought that was huge. About a minute later, he even hung in the air – is that possible -- to field a last second pass by Ravena and make an equally tough shot over the outstretched arms of Lanete for a 71-53 lead.

Those were back-to-back baskets that put away a tough foe.

As Pau Siarot made one free throw in a cameo appearance and JP Erram dribbled out the clock for a 75-56 victory, Ateneo’s first ever Filoil Flying V Premier Cup win was in the bag. Norman marveled at how his team was able to hold the offensive juggernaut that is San Beda. “They normally average 70-plus points a game. When you hold them to 56, that means you played great defense on them,” said the coach who has now won a championship in every Metro Manila-based tourney. There’s the PCCL, UAAP, Nike Summer League, the Uni-Games, and now the Filoil Flying V Premier Cup.

In case you have not been counting that’s a total of 12 trophies since 2007; the 12th title coming on the 12th day of June. The Blue Eagles began their summer campaign that seemed like eons ago against San Beda. And they closed out their pre-season games with a win over a tough and ancient foe. How’s that for perfect symmetry?

Oh, hey. He has 10 titles won in the PBA as well. And I do not know anyone coach with that kind of impressive haul (outside another Blue Eagle legend in Baby Dalupan who won 15 titles with Crispa, Great Taste Coffee, and Purefoods; 12 with UE; and 2 with Ateneo).

This title, of course, does not ease the pain on ’77 after all, we do not hang championship banners for tournaments outside the NCAA and UAAP. The old warhorses will continue to spin those yarns of three-peats and failed ones, of fights and rumbles, and of a great rivalry. But at least, we’ll have something to talk about. Until the UAAP Season 74 gets underway.

Setting expectations for the Blue Eagles

This season will serve as a banner year for the Ateneo Blue Eagles. Coming in as 3-peat champions, there is no doubt in my mind that this team is expected once again to contend. More than that, the team boasts of perhaps the most sought after class of rookies. Make no mistake about it, the team is coming back with TONS of expectations from the school, the rest of the league and even the whole basketball community but do keep in mind that despite all these HYPE, there are things that everyone should consider coming into this season:

1. With so many new players and technically only Eric Salamat and Jumbo Escueta leaving the team, incorporating these new players into Coach Norman's system may take time. Only Greg and Kiefer have played significant minutes in the summer leagues among the 5 newcomers. Expect Coach Norman to seldom use the Tallo + Capacio + Pessumal triumverate this year.

2. Between Greg and Kiefer, the phenom seems to have already found his role smoothly. Greg is just HUGE but right now there seems to be some uneasiness with him in the fold - especially on offense. Versus DLSU, Greg overwhelmed 6'8 Van Opstal on the boards and on defense but the Ateneo offense couldn't get its flow when he was down under. Expect him to dominate on the boards and on defense this year. Other than that, don't expect him scoring 30+ points per game just because he's a 7-footer.

3. Seems like Finals MVP Ryan Buenafe and Beda Boy Art Dela Cruz won't be seeing action at all this season. Or maybe never. That's a statement I'd rather not speculate on because of the rumors but yeah, expect these two guys not to appear on this year's roster and that gives us a big hole at the 3 position. Captain Bacon Austria is expected to be on the floor more often and Nico Salva just might spend more time at the three position.

4. Ryan Buenafe was Ateneo's "finisher" last year. Who'll clean the Blue Eagles mess or basically bail them out whenever necessary? Who's going to be Dirk? HAHA! Expect Nico Salva and Kiefer to fill in for this. That pick-and-roll between them will be deadly and unpredictable.

5. Lastly, despite all these "Ateneo domination" proclamations, expect this year's season to be even more competitive than last season. Expect UP to steal some games versus top-caliber teams. Expect NU to make the final four. Finally, expect FEU to top the eliminations with Ateneo following - just like last year. Let me know if this doesn't happen.

So here we are again. It's June and we're a month away from UAAP's opening day. Coming from the blue side, yeah, I see Ateneo as my own sentimental favorites. But wait, I see FEU dominating the year once again.

Predictions

Final Team Standings

1) FEU

2) Ateneo

3) NU

4) Adamson

5) DLSU

6) UST

7) UP

8) UE

Final Four

FEU in 2.

Ateneo in 1.

Finals

Ateneo in 3.

I'm no expert but this is the way I see it.

One big fight!!!

Coming out party for the Phenom

TJ Manotoc said it best: "This Phenom is FOR REAL"

I haven't seen a rookie dominate his debut game so well that he became the best player of the game with an amazing stat line: 25 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals. He was so great that Greg Slaughter's performance was almost overshadowed.

Watch out UAAP. Barring any injury, this kid's going to be big! He is FOR REAL!

March Madness Baby!

I'm no regular follower of US-NCAA basketball but man, I've been hearing a lot about the on going tourney and seems like it's one of the more exciting in years. So many close games and very few blowouts (which is a normal thing in tournaments like these). College basketball fans should be in a giddy! NBA scouts are all over the place as well! Exciting times for basketball as a sport. :)

I'm just hoping college basketball goes up to this level in the Philippines. I love the fact that UAAP and NCAA have become so popular that games are now televised LIVE. I remember the time when UAAP games were not televised and only championships were the only one's shown on TV - unfortunately, on delayed telecast!

With the rise of technology and social media these days, game information will forever be available. I remember following Ateneo games over twitter whenever I'm at work - shouting out when Ateneo held on for the win against FEU in the championship. Can't deny that college basketball right now is at it's peak but we need to realize that we're only focusing on the Manila teams and we don't have a "National Champion" - which the NCAA takes pride in unifying all leagues.

We do have the Champions' League (PCCL) and yeah, it has slowly grown to prominence - but I guess it will really take time for all these leagues to be aggregated into just one system. What's happening now is it becomes a "post-season" tournament where teams can strut their wares against opponents from other leagues and the title of "National Champion" doesn't have that attention just yet.

I hope a lot of time and funding can go into the PCCL. I want them to unify rules across all leagues so that when the tournament starts, we're all in the same page, footing etc.

I see Ateneo being the Duke counterpart of the NCAA. How about the other teams? What do you think?