Let’s do a quick review of the UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball tournament as we look ahead to the second and final round of eliminations.
Seven games down, seven more to go.
It’s been quite the first round for UAAP Season 87 with a share of upsets and thrilling contests between the country’s best collegiate squads. Teams have set the tone for their campaigns, while players have begun to thrive under the bright lights of MOA and Araneta.
To end the first round, we saw a once-struggling team produce their best start in years, while a budding rivalry has reached a new level of intensity in a long-awaited rematch.
Ahead of the second round, we take a quick look at each team’s performance after seven games, along with early storylines that could define the remainder of their UAAP Season 87 campaigns.
Ateneo Blue Eagles (1-6)
Ateneo’s first round has been marked by flashes of potential that come with the inevitable youth factor. For instance, the Eagles knocked a season-best 13 out of 43 triples against FEU, but failed to repel Jorick Bautista’s overtime heroics. Or against UE, where they allowed the Red Warriors to mount a comeback despite already holding a 10-point lead.
Free throw shooting also remains problematic for Ateneo, with their league-worst 55 percent (or 86 out of 154 clip). Likewise, the Blue Eagles have struggled on the inside, with Coach Tab relying on an all-Filipino rotation over foreign student-athlete Ayodeji Balogun.
Among their silver linings, though, are Shawn Tuano and Joshua Lazaro, who have embraced their bigger roles for the Eagles. Tuano is averaging a team-high 11.14 points, while Lazaro follows with 9.86 markers and a team-high 6.86 rebounds.
It’s an interesting time in Ateneo, who will likely use Round 2 of UAAP Season 87 as a stepping stone for this core’s immediate future.
FEU Tamaraws (1-6)
Growing pains have also defined the Tamaraws’ early season, who have dropped a string of winnable games due to late-game slumps and typical rookie lapses.
Still, we’re loving FEU’s core led by Veejay Pre, who’s looking like the Rookie of the Year with averages of 11.57 points and 6.57 rebounds after seven games. Gambian FSA Mo Konateh has dominated the boards with a league-best 16.14 rebounds. Janrey Pasaol has the potential to be another solid FEU guard once he gets his rhythm.
A Final Four berth will have to wait for FEU. But given their newfound experience, we’ll be anticipating the Tams to probably pull an upset or two to close out Season 87. After all, the potential is there, and it’s just a matter of adjusting to the collegiate game.
NU Bulldogs (2-5)
Even without FSA Mo Diassana, NU has shown much fight for Season 87. Behind their record, is a series of good starts, only for the Bulldogs to lose steam in crunch time.
NU’s usual contributors Jake Figueroa, Steve Nash Enriquez, and Jolo Manansala continue to anchor the Bulldogs’ offense. Kenshin Padrones recently broke out with an 18-point effort versus Ateneo, while PJ Palacielo has contributed in their earlier games.
Without question, the cloud of uncertainty remains over NU’s UAAP Season 87 campaign. Still, it’s now up to their all-Filipino cast to recover now that they’ve gotten good mileage together.
Remember, this NU core has made the Final Four in the last two seasons. Losing an FSA is a huge blow, but it’s not like these holdovers are strangers to winning either.
Adamson Soaring Falcons (3-4)
It’s quite the unique bunch in San Marcelino, who won over FEU and Final Four seeking UST to start their season. They also went toe-to-toe against NU, which was capped off by Joshua Yerro’s buzzer-beater that gave them the victory.
Save for UP and La Salle, Adamson only lost by nine points to Ateneo, and by one point to UE thanks to Wello Lingolingo’s insane game winner.
Monty Montebon has remained steady for the Falcons with a team-high 10.57 markers, followed by Cedrick Manzano’s 8.0 points, and Matty Erolon’s 6.71. Senior Joshua Yerro has averaged 6.14 points, while transferee Royce Mantua is fitting in nicely with 6.0 points.
In a prior interview with The GAME, head coach Nash Racela said that his Falcons will remain on the doorstep of a Final Four berth. And it’s proven true so far, given the team’s current performances. A playoff berth is 50-50, but they’re not exactly out of the race either.
Adamson has forced fourth-seed playoffs twice under the Nash Racela era. Can they do it again this season? Or even better? It is an unpredictable team after all.
UST Growling Tigers (4-3)
The Tigers are parading a solid group for Season 87. Nic Cabañero has received a scoring partner in FSA Mo Tounkara, while Forth Padrigao has been solid in steering their offense. Christian Manaytay, Gelo Crisostomo, and Mark Llmit are often the Tigers’ off-the-bench contributors.
But we’re yet to see the Tigers’ full depth, as seen with their league-worst 22.57 bench points after the first round. Still, rookie Amiel Acido has been given solid minutes, along with Fil-Am Geremy Robinson. Isaac Danting has finally debuted, while UST’s other Fil-Ams still have time to find their place in the system.
There’s no doubt that this UST team is deep on paper. Easier said than done, but it’s a matter of making these pieces fit together to form one cohesive unit on the court.
That, along with fixing their defensive lapses, and rebounding woes for the second round.
UE Red Warriors (5-2)
UAAP Season 87’s surprise team has excelled thanks to their balanced attack led by sharpshooter Wello Lingolingo and sophomore FSA Precious Momowei. Guards John Abate and Rain Maga are also solid contributors along with Ethan Galang and Devin Fikes.
UE is also top three in three-point shooting, which is led by Lingolingo’s 42 percent shooting clip (16 out of 38), and Maga’s 54 percent in 17 three-point attempts. (6 out of 11). Bench production, though, can still be improved, along with some help for Momowei in rebounding.
Without a doubt, the second round will be an acid test for the Red Warriors. Gone are the days of mediocrity in Recto, and this is now a team respected by the UAAP playing field. Given this, it’ll be interesting to see how Coach Jack Santiago will tweak his system to break UE’s 17-year Final Four absence.
UP Fighting Maroons (6-1)
Without question, UP is a deep, deep team led by the likes of JD Cagulangan, Harold Alarcon, Francis Lopez, and one-and-done Quentin Millora-Brown. When they’re executing, it’s nearly impossible to stop the Maroons’ high-octane offense. UP (74.57) only trails Season 86 foes La Salle (75.57) in points scored per game.
However, UP started slow in their final three contests against Adamson, UST, and La Salle. They trailed the Tigers until the third quarter before going on a 21-4 run, while they had a 9-26 first quarter against the Falcons.
It proved to be their undoing against the Archers, who jumped out to a 38-25 lead heading into halftime. Sure, there was UP’s 27-7 run in the third period, but it wasn’t enough as La Salle won comfortably 68-56 in a tension-filled Finals rematch.
UP remains a clear lock to make the Season 87 Finals at this rate. But at the same time, pressure is now on them to solidify their vaunted form, and live up to the expectations placed on this team in particular.
Apart from resolving their lapses, UP is also left to solve the La Salle puzzle, which will likely come with more heated moments on the court. These two will likely meet again in the Finals, and the Maroons would hate to lose the title twice to the Green Archers.
La Salle Green Archers (6-1)
After seven games, it’s clear that the Archers have yet to reach their peak form. And that’s even scarier considering that they have seven games’ worth of lessons to unpack.
Reigning MVP Kevin Quiambao and Mike Phillips’ consistency is already a given for the Archers. However, it’ll be interesting to see their supporting cast stabilize, which includes Joshua David, Doy Dungo, JCee Macalalag, EJ Gollena, and Raven Gonzales among others.
The Archers are already the league’s best offensive squad after one round, which is fueled by another league-high 21.14 assists led by KQ’s 5.43 dimes. At the same time, La Salle is also the top rebounding team with 50.71 boards after one round thanks to Motor Mike and KQ’s presence.
Defense isn’t too shabby either, with the Archers (64.0 points) only trailing UP (63.86 points) and Adamson (62.14 points) in points allowed per contest. So what more once everybody in Taft gets comfortable with their defined roles in Topex Robinson’s system?
Banner image courtesy of the UAAP Media Bureau.