Green Archers battle UST, aim for fifth straight win

It seemed like the world of Philippine collegiate sports stopped last October 12, 2013 when the DLSU Green Archers and the UST Growling Tigers showcased a heart-stopping Game Three of the UAAP Season 76 Men’s Basketball Finals. And almost 10 months after La Salle clinched the championship, the defending champions and the runner-ups, the UST Growling Tigers are set to face for the first time in UAAP Season 77 this coming Sunday.

The unforgettable story

UST handed over to La Salle their first loss of the season, 63-58, early in the opening day of UAAP 76. Former UST star Jeric Teng led the Growling Tigers with 23 points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals. However, La Salle was able to bounce back in the second round with a 69-64 victory over the Espana-based cagers. Jeron Teng fired with a double-double 19 points and 11 rebounds coupled with two assists, one steal and one block to lift the Taft-based squad.

The story didn’t end there, though, as the two squads faced each other in the best-of-three finals series. UST survived Game One just by a single point, 73-72, behind the stellar performance of Kevin Ferrer. The Growling Tigers didn’t take the championship crown yet in Game Two as the Green Archers managed to pull away, 77-70, to extend the finals series to a winner-take-all Game Three. La Salle then did the unexpected in Game Three as they prevailed over UST in overtime, 71-69, to take the honor as the UAAP 76 Champions.

The new chapter

Teng and Almond Vosotros are expected to man La Salle’s offense in the inside and from the perimeter. Although Vosotros has been shaky with his field goals from the perimeter and beyond the arc, it appeared that his lapses were gradually addressed during their recent victory against the UP Fighting Maroons. Vosotros successfully made three out of his four attempts from the three point line to boost his contributions to 15 points, coupled with six rebounds and five assists.

Bench players and big men Norbert Torres and Prince Rivero continues to step up for the Green Archers as well. Torres had six points and led the rebounding for La Salle with 13 rebounds in their latest outing against UP while rookie Rivero had a fair share of six points and five rebounds.

On the other hand, sophomore point guard Kib Montalbo, who replaced injured Thomas Torres in the starting line up, keeps on building a name for himself as he remains solid with his offensive and defensive duties for the defending champions.

No longer with veterans Teng and Clark Bautista and longtime head coach Pido Jarencio, the Growling Tigers now rely on remaining seniors Ferrer, Aljon Mariano and Karim Abdul. The trio are versatile with their offense as they can all shoot in the inside and from the perimeter. However, their strengths in offense came up short in their recent 63-61 loss against the ADMU Blue Eagles. Abdul and Mariano contributed 19 and 17 points, respectively, while Ferrer was just limited to four points.

Eyes are also on rising third year players Louie Vigil and Kent Lao who have been performing pretty well for the Growling Tigers. Emerging from the bench, Vigil and Lao were given the go signal to play significant minutes for UST and so far, they have been consistent under new head coach Bong Dela Cruz.

On August 10, 4 pm, the Mall of Asia Arena will be once again flocked by fans in green and yellow. With the history that surrounds the two squads, their first round face off this season will surely be another classic that no one would wish to miss. Will the Green Archers continue their four game winning streak to five or will this be snapped by the hungry Growling Tigers.