Green Archers seek 9th straight win, do-or-die for FEU

The DLSU Green Archers are a win away from the UAAP finals as they continue their journey to reclaim the championship after a five-year drought in which they saw their arch-rival ADMU Blue Eagles dominate the league during that stretch.

It was a very painful sight for the Green Archers, especially last year when they lost to the defending champions in the semifinals. However, the Green Archers are back with a revamped squad and a new coach and they have been on a tear as of late, riding their hot winning streak of eight games, which allowed them to grab the second spot and gain a twice-to-beat advantage in their Final Four match-up against a similar foe, the FEU Tamaraws. On the other hand, the Tamaraws have struggled in the second round and they have dropped to the third spot after a terrific first round sweep.

The match up between DLSU and FEU has caught everyone’s attention thus far after three entertaining matches between the two squads this season. The Green Archers nearly defeated the Tamaraws in the first round, which would have given them their first loss of the season. La Salle fell short though and they suffered an end game collapse that allowed FEU to force overtime and steal the game.

In the second round, shades of déjà vu were in play. but head coach Juno Sauler kept the composure of his squad and did not allow another end game collapse as they toppled the Tamaraws. Then, in their mist recent match-up during the playoff for second place last September 21, the winning streak of the Green Archers was in jeopardy as they looked like they were going to suffer another end game collapse but LA Revilla thought otherwise. La Salle took the lead in the season series, but more importantly clinched the second seed and a twice-to-beat advantage.

The story of the upcoming match-up is the battle between the front court duo of La Salle versus the backcourt tandem of FEU. Jason Perkins and Jeron Teng have been getting it done so far for the Green Archers, doing damage in the paint while mixing it up with a few jumpers. Perkins is up to his usual antics, averaging a double-double over the second round and the recent playoff. Moreover, Teng has also posted stellar scoring and rebounding numbers as of late. Teng has also had his best games against the Tamaraws so far this season, including a line of 25 points and 15 rebounds against FEU in the first round, and this makes the upcoming match-up even more interesting.

For the Tamaraws, the phenomenal tandem of Terrence Romeo and RR Garcia has carried them throughout the whole season and it has also been evident in their match up against the Green Archers. Romeo has been having his way against the Green Archers, leading his squad with the late comeback win during the first round and he scored 22 points in the playoff though he had a considerably difficult time posting numbers. Garcia, on the other hand, has used his size to his advantage against the smaller Almond Vosotros, Thomas Torres, or LA Revilla by going to the paint more often against them rather than relying on his sharpshooting from downtown.

This will definitely be an interesting semifinal match up between the Green Archers and the Tamaraws because no squad has a clear advantage over the other and both are hungry to put an end to their extended championship droughts. Will the Green Archers march into the finals, or will the Tamaraws live for another day? The battle begins on September 25 at 4 PM in the Mall of Asia Arena.