WHILE De La Salle is safely perched atop the heap, three teams try to fan their fading chances for a Final Four spot in Season 79 University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) men’s basketball action.
The Green Archers are three wins away from sweeping the 14-game elimination round while University of the East (UE), National University (NU) and University of the Philippines (UP) are looking for important victories to push their chances for the semifinals.
How dominating is De La Salle? The Green Archers’ 11 victories are more than the combined wins of the Bulldogs (4-7), Fighting Maroons (3-8) and Red Warriors (2-8).
And the Taft-based team has no plans of slowing down, judging from its 99-56 rout of host University of Santo Tomas last Sunday to secure the twice-to-beat advantage in the Final Four.
De La Salle goes for win No. 12 against last-placer UE in the first game at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, while NU tries to arrest a five-game skid as it faces UP at 4 p.m.
The Green Archers’ 43-point blowout of UST was the most lopsided since the league started to computerize games statistics in 2003—although jaded UAAP observers stressed the Bulldogs could have worst losses in the distant past.
The comforts of being unreachable at the top has given De La Salle Head Coach Aldin Ayo the luxury to experiment with his roster.
Against UST, Ayo, at one point, fielded a tall lineup composed of Mark Dyke, Jason Perkins, Ben Mbala, Julian Sargent and Abu Tratter. All are at least 6-foot-2.
“Coach likes to try out new things. I think that was just a way for him to check if the five of us could jell,” said Mbala, the leading candidate for the season’s Most Valuable Player award.
Ayo’s deputy, Paulo Sauler, said the team is not focusing on the sweep but on their plays.
“We just want to continue improving each game. We haven’t proven anything yet,” Sauler said. The team’s last two assignments are against Ateneo de Manila on November 5 and defending champion Far Eastern University (FEU) on November 12.
While Ayo could experiment at this point, Red Warriors Head Coach Derrick Pumaren is just looking for a way to resuscitate his team’s chances.
“We still have a shot, but we are not in control. We have to take care of business but we will need help from the other teams,” Pumaren said.
And that includes from younger brother Franz, whose Adamson University squad is at fourth spot with a 5-5 record. A loss by UE and a win by the Soaring Falcons will officially eliminate the Recto-based team.
Pumaren has also other issues to settle in the team. Top scorer Bonbon Batiller was benched in their 71-79 loss to Adamson University for a verbal spat with teammate Omar Larupay during practice.
UE’s last three assignments are against the Tamaraws on October 29, Bulldogs on November 6 and Fighting Maroons on November 13.
UP, meanwhile, remained in the Final Four picture but Bo Perasol’s wards must know how to finish games.
The Fighting Maroons blew a 20-point lead to FEU to surrender a 63-60 decision the last time out. UP also lost to the Tamaraws by just two points, 49-51, in the first round.
NU, on the other hand, is within striking distance for the No. 4 spot but Coach Eric Altamirano’s wards must get their acts together to avoid in what could be a disappointing season for the Season 76 champs.