FilOil Semis Preview: Archers vs. Lions

After an impressive 84-70 rout of defending their Philippine Collegiate Champions League (PCCL) Championship against the San Sebastian Golden Stags, the De La Salle Green Archers booked tickets to the semis to clash with the undefeated San Beda Red Lions.

In the opening day of the preseason, La Salle had almost completed a 16-point comeback, but the Red Lion duo of Anjo Caram and Julius Armon combined for 26 points, leading their team to a 69-63 win, handing La Salle its first loss.

Opening day was also the debut of new head coach Gee Abanilla for La Salle and Ronnie Magsanoc for San Beda; new recruits Jeron Teng and Mac Tallo of La Salle also made their college debuts in the game.

But much has changed since.

Teng has become a player that the Archers have been waiting for. He has shown that he has the skill set to take over a game, which was very evident during the Green Archers’ epic overtime victory against the Ateneo Blue Eagles.

Tallo has also become a positive catalyst for the Green-and-White; his fancy playmaking has added another weapon to an already revamped roster.
On the other side of the court, the Lions’ pride, Armon, has announced that he would not be defending their NCCA championship title.
After spending time abroad for the Lions’ annual training camp, the Nigerian native had decided to opt out of college ball; he has chosen the path to the upcoming PBA Draft.

With all that said, the Archers need to focus on numerous matchups to grab the win.

The LaSallian gives you the matchups to watch out for in this epic semis bout.

 

Point Guard

Anjo Caram skewered the Archers single-handedly during their first encounter, scoring a game-high of 15 points, which includes a perfect 7-of-7 from the foul line.

LA Revilla went cold during that game, scoring only five points in his 27 minutes of action due to Caram’s tight defense.

The Green floor general must, hence, elevate his game to match the intensity of his Red counterpart.

For the past two games, Revilla has averaged an impressive 17 points, which has helped the team play at par against the Blue Eagles and the Golden Stags.

Revilla will, however, need to open up passing lanes, and play more aggressively to open multiple shot opportunities for his team.

 

Shooting Guard

Despite the Archers’ injury plague in Luigi Dela Paz and Oda Tampus, the team has not run out of point getters. Zobel standout, Jed Manguerra, has been a pleasant surprise for the Green team as he rose to the occasion, providing a much needed defense.

Julius Armon from the opposing team has, however, in their first encounter, breezed by the La Salle guards, rendering them ineffective; his surprising departure has suddenly thrown favor back to the Green-and-White.

Melo Lim was tasked to fill the void American native left.

With San Beda losing a scoring machine, watch out for Manguerra and Mac Tallo as they hound their counterparts, and score more efficiently, capitalizing on the absence of Armon.

 

Small Forward

After a physical battle with NCAA MVP Calvin Abueva, “The Beast”, Teng has proven that he could go head-to-head with any player.

Watch for the wingmen duo, Teng and Joshua Webb, to get physical down the stretch and use their athletic advantage against the likes of Rome Dela Rosa and Jp Mendoza.

Teng and Webb must be consistent in penetrating the hoop for multiple trips at the charity stripe. With the former Xavier Golden Stallion as the team’s top free throw shooter, look for a Green, stepping on the gas pedal in the early game.
Power Forward

The Bedan frontcourt will gauge the La Salle big men’s improvement after former Green Archer Jun Limpot started to call the shots.

Awaiting Yutien Andrada and company is Jake Pascual.

Look for the former PCU product to be active on both ends of the floor to counter the front court of the Taft-based squad.

Andrada is expected to make his presence felt on the floor by playing good defense to prevent Pascual from going into any rhythm. His uncanny shot-blocking ability should help him patrol the low post effectively.

For a Green win, the team is expected to be consistent in boxing out the Red Lions to dominate the boards.

Pascual will get a handful of defenders from time to time courtesy of the Archer forwards.

 

Center

The bigmen duo of Kyle Pascual and Ola Adeogun presents yet another tough challenge for the Green-and-White bigs.

Their deadly dose has caused a plethora of problems for the Gee Abanilla-mentored squad, which has received heavy pounding with the Bedan grind-it-out style of play.

Norbert Torres’ improved skill set is expected to matchup against Pascual and Adeogun; but he will have to work hard to earn shots, with a much tougher Red Lion front line.

In their first encounter, the trio, Torres, Fonzo Gotladera, and Papot Paredes, shot a combined 35 percent on 21 shots.

 

Bench

Each team’s bench has played affected the results of the game before.

With Teng in the starting lineup, the Green bench mob would have to play harder to play at par with the Lion’s super subs who have scored big in the past.

San Beda’s one-two punch, Baser Amer and Adeogun, will be a challenge for the Archers; the Beda duo is very unpredictable and could score from virtually anywhere. The Lions also have the likes of Jp Mendoza, Arthur Dela Cruz and Ryusei Koga to watch out for.

Almond Vosotoros is key to the Archer bench, given his uncanny ability to hit shots from the inside and out.

Young guns, Thomas Torres, Gabby Reyes and Mac Tallo, would have to bring in their A-Game, and give more dribbles than the Lions could handle.

Agility and athleticism makes the La Salle subs different. Expect defensive enforcers Jovet Mendoza and Webb to anchor a lead.

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The Archers will also need to dictate the tempo that fits their style of play.

In their last game, the Archers was adjusting to a new system and a new coach, and redefining their roles; the team has become a more cohesive unit. Many players have stepped up to the occasion.

Motivation and desire must dominate the team’s mindset in to win the game and advance to the finals.

The winner of the match will face off against the winner of the Ateneo and National University matchup.