The second round of the UAAP Season 78 Basketball tournament will open with a rematch of the 2013 UAAP finalists as the DLSU Green Archers face the UST Growling Tigers on Sunday, October 11, at 4 pm in the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
UST is currently tied with FEU at the top of the standings, boasting a record of six wins and one loss. On the other hand, DLSU and their archrivals, the ADMU Blue Eagles, both occupy third place with a record of four wins and three losses. Both DLSU and UST are coming off victories, with the former looking to build on their come-from-behind win over Ateneo after being down by as many as 15 points just last week. The Growling Tigers, on the other hand, are looking to push their winning streak to four games while securing solo first place early in the second round.
Tale of the tape
Team captain Jeron Teng, Jason Perkins, and Thomas Torres are the only members of the team remaining from the 2013 championship squad. On the other hand, UST’s current roster features six remaining veterans in Karim Abdul, Ed Daquioag, Jeepy Faundo, Kevin Ferrer, Jon Sheriff, and Kent Lao.
In their first round encounter, the Growling Tigers took a 77-61 victory despite the Green Archers leading by as many as 14 points in the first half. Teng led La Salle with 13 points and nine rebounds while rookie Josh Torralba added 12 points, but it wasn’t enough to overcome UST in the second half. The España-based team shot 46 percent from behind the three-point line and outscored DLSU, 29-13, in the third period. La Salle also struggled offensively after managing to only convert 13 of their 29 free throws attempts and six of their 27 three-point field goals in what was virtually a one-sided affair in the second half.
Keys to victory
Expect the Green Archers to utilize their speed and outside shooting to aid Teng on the offensive end, while the Growling Tigers will look to assert their front-court presence on both ends of the court. Reinforced by their perimeter game, MVP candidates Ferrer and Daquioag will look to sustain their momentum in the second round, with the latter coming off a 34-point performance against the UE Red Warriors last Wednesday. Perkins, who has had an inconsistent first round so far, will be looking to build on his 13-point, five-rebound performance against Ateneo to help DLSU get the victory.
On the defensive end, expect DLSU big men Larry Muyang and Abu Tratter to be busy with neutralizing UST’s Abdul. Be on the lookout for Torralba and Julian Sargent, both of whom may be given the chore of neutralizing Daquioag and rest of UST’s perimeter players. With both players pegged as MVP candidates, Teng and Ferrer will most likely lead encounter instances wherein they will be matched up against one another. On Sunday, both teams are aiming to begin the second round on a high note not just to support their respective bids for a ticket to the Final Four, but also to ensure their path to the championship is clear.
— Claro Manzano
