King Archer on the rise

The rebuilding Green Archers is trying to regain the intensity it had in the past.

So far, the team’s recruitment and reorganizing have succeeded in bringing DLSU an inch closer to its former glory. The young De La Salle Green Archers squad now has a new system of basketball and new faces to call the shots.

Jeron Teng, among the new set of players, perhaps stood out as the most-anticipated rookie of this UAAP Season 75 batch. The former Xavier standout, who became famous for his explosive 104-point performance back in his high school days, has led the rebuilding DLSU basketball crew in the first round.

The rookie has proved his worth by playing in the starting line-up. Moreover, the other players have also learned to rely on his uncanny ability to get the ball in. He has already shown many UAAP basketball spectators that he could be the next rising Archer, and the answer to every Lasallian’s hopes of bringing back the tough and strong reputation of the Archers years ago.
During the first games of the season, not to mention the preseason runs, Teng has already showed poise and ability to score the ball.  In his first FilOil stint, the rookie helped the Archers reach the finals run, which the team lost to NU. Teng also delivered a cold-blooded three pointer against Ateneo to force the teams into overtime. The phenom averaged 10.8 points for the Green Archers.

A decent start
The rookie averaged 16.7 points, grabbed 7.4 rebounds, and dished out about two assists per outcome in the first seven games of the season.

Teng has also been a part of the Archers’ starting lineup in all first round games. This relatively small, 6’2, hotshot has managed to play at a disadvantage. With his upper body strength and agile built, Teng surpassed most of his defenders, and has been constantly successful in drawing defenders to open up.

Of the team’s seven games in the first round, Jeron has topped the scores thrice. The rookie also showcased a spectacular performances in his game against his brother in the much-awaited DLSU-UST duel. He outscored his brother 17 to nine. He has also had stellar clutch games against UE and UP where he managed to score the knockout baskets to home a win.

In an interview, he expressed that he is more of a slasher scorer rather than a perimeter shooter. “I prefer to really drive to the basket. I don’t settle for outside shots. I create for myself and for others also. Kunyare drive ako, then kick out. ‘Yun ang role ko sa team,” he stressed.

The leading Rookie of the Year candidate has also had his downside in the first round of the current season. The highlight of which was his dismal free throw shooting that separated him from the big names in the tournament. In the first round he shot a total of 22 out of 36 free throw attempts to record a 61 percent free throw shooting. The most fouled Archer in the lineup has since exposed one of his weaknesses early in the season.

The historic 35

This rookie can definitely score; he showed one of the best runs set by an individual Green Archer that many Green-and-white fans have been waiting for quite some time.

Prior to the Archers’ fourth win of the season against National University, DLSU’s three victories against UP, UE and Adamson were close ones.

Jeron recently scored an astonishing 35 points as if every shot were magnetized to the ring that Saturday afternoon.  Not known for his outside prowess, Teng also contributed four three-pointers.

Records surpassed
Teng’s 35-point effort has even surpassed some of the previous records established by other athletes in UAAP basketball.  He exceeded the 25-point performance, the highest of any rookie back then, of Mike Gamboa in 2007.

He also surpassed other Lasallian players in terms of scoring, beating “The Ninja” Josepy Yeo’s 31-point effort in a game against FEU back in 2003.  Jeron’s August 18 performance has made him the top player to score the most in the past ten seasons of the league, outplaying the 33-point exertion of Ateneo’s Rabbeh Al-Hussaini and Adamson’s Ken Bono.

This year, his remarkable 35 is the most number of points scored so far. He even beat RayRay Parks’ 25-point performance in a game against UST.

What do we expect next?
He has already proved that he can score. Look for other teams to bring their lockdown defence specialists to stop this momentous rookie.

He is slowly establishing his role as a premier player for La Salle. He can drive and put the ball on the floor or open up chances for other teammates. Rest assured, Jeron’s offensive awareness and continuous aggressive play would provide the arsenal DLSU needs to overcome hurdles.

Teng believes though that there are always things to improve. When asked what he needs to work on, he humbly stated, “Shooting ko. I have to improve it a lot. Lalo na [at] maraming nagsasabi na La Salle team is known na wala ng shooting.”