COMING UP BIG
La Salle entered the season without its MVP, then lost two key cogs somewhere along the way to the end of the first round. University of Santo Tomas hardly earned attention during preseason discussions on the favorites for the UAAP Season 88 men’s basketball tournament.
If the Archers are somehow still in the mix of the title hunt and the Tigers are somehow among the leaders of this season’s tournament, there’s no need to look too far for reasons.
The top of the statistical points (SP) race at the end of the first round holds the answers.
Mike Phillips leads everyone in the SP race, tallying an average of 84.429 as the Green Archers are above .500 at 4-3, even with its star Kevin Quiambao leaving after last season and two key cogs in Mason Amos and Kean Baclaan winding up with knee injuries in different stages of the round.
“He has the propensity to step up [but knows when to] take a back seat, somewhat like when KQ (Quiambao) made a decision to return last year,” Robinson said, talking to the Inquirer about Phillips. “Like this season when Mason went down, he immediately took the team leader’s role.”
Phillips, a 6-foot-8 high-motor forward, has stepped up in offense for Robinson and the Archers with Quiambao gone, shooting just a shade over 13 points per game while averaging 15.7 rebounds as La Salle stayed in the thick of the Final Four race despite losing Amos and Baclaan.
The Growling Tigers, meanwhile, have been the collective surprise of the tournament.
‘A blessing’
After struggling to make the playoffs last season and bombing out as the No. 4 seed, the Tigers are at second with a 5-2 slate behind the leading National U Bulldogs, and coach Pido Jarencio basically has three standouts to thank.
“He’s a blessing for choosing to come over to UST,” Jarencio told the Inquirer over the phone on Monday after the stats race was released to the media, referring to rookie Collins Akowe, who trails Phillips narrowly with an 84.286 SPs average.
The 6-foot-10 rookie center has been the big difference for Santo Tomas, which had two other guards in the top 10 of the SP race.
Though Akowe won’t be eligible to win the season MVP, should he top the SP race at the end of the eliminations, he will win the Foreign Student-Athlete of the Year award.
But Santo Tomas is not just about Akowe, as Nic Cabañero and Forthsky Padrigao made it to the elite list, a 1-2-3 punch that Jarencio expected even before the season started.
“Those two (Cabañero and Padrigao) want to prove a point being graduating players,” Jarencio went on in Filipino. “They want to leave the university with a championship. They have been working very hard because they want to repay the trust of UST and the community.
“Still, being in the Top 10 (of the SP race) is just a by-product of how we play as a team.”
Robinson said that La Salle’s immediate target is the Final Four, which is why its 72-69 win over University of the Philippines on Sunday was a big one as the Archers grabbed a tie for third heading into the second round.
“There’s a realistic chance that both (Amos and Baclaan) can return if we make the Final Four,” Robinson added. “The team knows that and it will be a collective effort for us to get there.”
Making the list
Second year Far Eastern University gunner Janrey Pasaol ranks third with 80.429 SPs, averaging 18.29 points, 6.57 assists, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.14 steals while helping the Tamaraws to two wins.
Precious Momowei of the University of the East is fourth with 80.0 SPs, though only one FSA can be included in the Elite Team, with Bulldog Jake Figueroa rounding out the top five with a 77.429 average after posting 15.43 points, seven rebounds, 3.14 assists, 2.14 steals and 1.14 blocks per game.
Cabañero is running sixth with an average of 76.571 after norms of 19.43 points, 6.29 rebounds, 2.29 assists and 1.71 steals, with Padrigao completing the Top 10 with 63.667 despite missing the Tigers’ first game because of a suspension carried over from last year.
Running seventh to ninth are Tamaraw Mo Konateh (74.429), Ateneo’s Kymani Ladi (67.571) and Dom Escobar (64.0).
