(Photo Credit: FIBA) The Gilas Pilipinas team for the 3x3 2017 World Cup kicked off action yesterday in Nantes, France, ending the day with a split. They managed to surprise a Romanian team that was favored by many, but was humbled by the hometown team.  For Pinoys, the results don't matter as much. What matters is getting to see players like Kiefer Ravena and Jeron Teng play with each other, as evidenced by the amount of support both players got from fans online. But neither of them shined as the best player for the Gilas Pilipinas. That title goes to the youngest player in the whole tournament, the one and only Kobe Paras. To be frank, expectations for Kobe were low entering this tournament for a number of experts. Some have called him overrated *looks at a mirror* and some have gone as far as to call him a bust. But as evidenced by how he performed for the first two games of the 3x3 tournament, we may have to rethink those labels *looks at a mirror once again*.  ...

(Photo Credit: Janine Torre, The GUIDON) Against the JRU Heavy Bombers, Troy Mallillin finally made his much awaited debut as a Blue Eagle. Just seeing him in uniform was already enough for fans of the Blue Eagles to go wild. Seeing a NCAA Juniors MVP wear an Ateneo jersey feels weird, for any fan. Seeing a former La Salle Greenhills player wear the blue and white? It's like an Ateneo High School boy wearing a La Salle jersey. Oh.. wait... Obviously, any Atenean is brimming with excitement right now after managing to secure (or is it really secure?) the services of the former NCAA Juniors MVP. But what else are the other implications of Troy Mallillin taking his talents to Katipunan? Let's break it down: In the short term Right now, don't expect Troy to get a lot of minutes. As mentioned before , Ateneo is filled with a number of forwards in Mike Nieto, Vince Tolentino and Raffy Verano. Shaun Ildefonso is no longer in that fray of forwards after taking his talen...

The Ateneo Blue Eagles managed to escape against the De La Salle Green Archers, 80-78, with the entire team managing to chip in enough for the team. Saving the day for the Blue Eagles was Thirdy Ravena, who hit a three-pointer late in the game to give the Blue Eagles the lead for good against La Salle. For analysis on that, check out this breakdown on that play by the Blue Eagles. Otherwise, here are some photos from yesterday's action between the Blue Eagles and the Green Archers:

It was a tight game all throughout between the Blue Eagles and the Green Archers, and with Ateneo facing a one point lead with 18 seconds remaining, the Blue Eagles needed a shot. This has been the issue of Ateneo ever since a certain Phenom left the Blue Eagles after a great five-year run. They could not find a guy to go to in the clutch. This time around, someone was able to step up to give the Blue Eagles the victory against their archrivals. It was none other than Thirdy Ravena, who received a ton of flak from fans after a poor performance in last year's Finals series against the Green Archers. Sure, this is just the preseason, but seeing him make such a big shot in a hotly contested game should give him and the Blue Eagle faithful a ton of confidence as we slowly come closer to the UAAP season. It's easy to give Thirdy lots of credit for that shot, but someone who deserves as much credit for making that happen is Tyler Tio, the former Golden Stallion who...

(Photo Credit: Filoil Flying V Sports) I first watched the NU Bulldogs of 2012 durig the Filoil Flying V Preseason Cup. They were up against the Ateneo Blue Eagles. It was a clash that a number of people were highly anticipating considering the amount of talent which both teams have. At the end of it all, it was the talent of the Bulldogs which reigned supreme, as they thoroughly crushed the Blue Eagles during that very same meeting. I remember feeling incredibly scared for the rest of the UAAP after that very same meeting between Ateneo and NU. An Ateneo team that featured Greg Slaughter, Nico Salva and Kiefer Ravena received quite the beating against Bobby Ray Parks and crew. It was difficult to imagine such a thing from happening. So much emotions were swirling inside my head. Fast forward to a couple of months later and Ateneo and NU once again faced off, this time in the Mall of Asia Arena. A blowout was the result of this game, except this time, it was the Blue Eagles...