Basketball
UAAP Season 74 preview, part 2: The Contenders
Click here if you missed part 1 of the preview: The Pretenders
They’re the big boys of the league, the ones who will figure in the race at the very end. Three-time defending champion Ateneo leads the pack and will be the slight favorites to start the tourney, but the other top teams are not going to make it easy.
De La Salle Green Archers
Key additions: Norbert Torres, LA Revilla, Arnold Van Opstal
Key losses: Joel Tolentino, Nico Elorde, Ferdinand
Roster: Yutien Andrada, Simon Atkins, Luigi de la Paz, Ponso Gotladera, Joseph Marata, Jovet Mendoza, Papot Paredes, Revilla, Martin Reyes, Roldan Sara, Jarelan Tampus, Torres, Van Opstal, Maui Villanueva, Almond Vosotros, Joshua Webb
Coach: Dindo Pumaren
Long-time powerhouse DLSU had been under the radar ever since the team missed the Final Four in 2009 for the first (and only) time since the format was instituted. But the past two summers, the Green Archers have stockpiled talent and this should be the year it all comes together.
The La Salle lineup is loaded, from the holdovers like Simon Atkins, Luigi Dela Paz, Joseph Marata and Jovet Mendoza to the rookies that include former Philippine youth team standout Norbert Torres, Arnold Van Opstal and former San Beda Red Cubs Ponso Gotladera, Dan Sara and the returning LA Revilla.
Defensively, this team will be a nightmare for the other teams. They have their trademark platoon of quick hard-nosed guards applying constant pressure on ballhandlers. And if you manage to survive that, they have an athletic frontline rotation with length that goes on for miles with Van Opstal joining Yutien Andrada and Papot Paredes. And they have the depth to keep that famed La Salle Press running at full speed for all 40 minutes of the game.
DLSU will be very good in the open court; they always are. And if Torres is as advertised, then they’ll be just as tough in the halfcourt grind. But this is the rare team where every guy on its roster, from 1-16, can be a threat not just to contribute but to dominate. And that depth makes it a legitimate contender to win it all.
Adamson Falcons
Key additions: None
Key losses: Will Stinnett, Michael Galinato
Roster: Mike Agustin, Lester Alvarez, Rodney Brondial, Roider Cabrera, Eric Camson, Jerick Canada, Jan Colina, Allen Etrone, Janus Lozada, Genesis Manuel, Austin Manyara, Ryan Monteclara, Alex Nuyles, Jeff Olalia, Harry Petilos, Jansen Rios
Coach: Leo Austria
The leap from being a middling team to a good team isn’t easy, but that’s peanuts compared to making that leap from good to elite. That’s the challenge that will face the Adamson Falcons this year.
They’ve proven they can be a good team. The Falcons qualified for the Final Four as the third seed before dropping their lone playoff game to Ateneo last year. The whole Adamson core will return more experienced after strong showings in both the PBA D-League and the Fil-Oil preseason tourney.
The Falcons will likely be better this year. But after a recruitment-heavy summer that Adamson all but failed to participate in, the Falcons might not have done enough to even stay ahead of the teams directly below them, much less close the gap on the teams right above. Adamson is close to the top now, but they might have already hit their ceiling.
Lester Alvarez has become a nice first option for this team as a scoring point guard with good passing and court vision. Alex Nuyles, when his jumper is falling, is incredibly difficult to defend with his explosive vertical leap and first step.
But a guy to watch out for is versatile big man Eric Camson. His game is starting to resemble that of Ranidel De Ocampo, with reliable outside shooting and now, the occasional lumbering drive that leads to awkward yet athletic finishes. But Adamson is going to need Camson and the rest of the Falcons to do a lot of growing up if they are to take the next step as a team.
FEU Tamaraws
Key additions: Russell Escoto, Christian Sentcheu
Key losses: Reil Cervantes, Paul Sanga, Pipo Noundou (injury)
Roster: Mark Bringas, JR Cawaling, Carl Bryan Cruz, Escoto, Chris Exciminiano, AA Fabian, Clarence Forondo, RR Garcia, Jolas Guerrero, Jens Knuttel, Gryann Mendoza, Pipo Noundou, Roger Pogoy, Aldrech Ramos, Terrence Romeo, Sentcheu, Cris Tolomia
Coach: Bert Flores
Some teams have to work hard during the recruitment phase, but others like this year’s Tamaraws, have the luxury of sitting back. Not that they haven’t been busy, as early reports had them wooing the talented core of a team from the rival NCAA.
But development, not recruitment, will be the buzzword for FEU this season. The Tams will be losing two integral but ultimately replaceable pieces in Reil Cervantes and Paul Sanga.
But a strong core – Season 73 MVP RR Garcia, Rookie of the Year Terrence Romeo, and SMART-Gilas Pilipinas projects Aldrech Ramos and JR Cawaling – will return for another tour of duty for FEU. Garcia, Romeo and Ramos are already among the best at what they do. Ramos, additionally, will be touting extended range, sharpened during his stint with the national team.
And while Cawaling didn’t see as much action with SMART-Gilas, he could be the wildcard that brings all this together. The wildly inconsistent Cawaling, at his best, has shown shooting prowess, playmaking ability, and length as a defender – plenty of tools to blossom into a true star if he can just manage to stay engaged for a full game.
And those four guys plus either of the two rookies Russell Escoto or Christian Sentcheu would make an exceptional two-way lineup to end games. The late preseason injury to forward Pipo Noundou will be a blow to the chances of the Tamaraws. Still, FEU looks as primed as ever to challenge for the title.
Ateneo Blue Eagles
Key additions: Greg Slaughter, Kiefer Ravena, Oping Sumalinog (from injury)
Key losses: Eric Salamat, Ryan Buenafe, Arthur dela Cruz
Roster: Bacon Austria, Gwyne Capacio, Justin Chua, Bon Jovi Cipriano, JP Erram, Jeric Estrada, Frank Golla, Tonino Gonzaga, Kirk Long, Emman Monfort, Von Pessumal, Ravena, Nico Salva, Slaughter, Sumalinog, Juami Tiongson
Coach: Norman Black
At first glance, most of the top teams follow either of these two models: the veteran team that has been together for a couple of years, or a team that received a shot in the arm in terms of talent during the recruitment phase. Three-time defending champion Ateno is, well, a little of both.
No question they have a veteran core that know each other like the backs of their hands. Kirk Long, Emman Monfort, Nico Salva, Justin Chua and the other returnees have won multiple championships together and know coach Norman Black’s system by heart.
And that’s why this year will be tricky for the Season 74 hosts Ateneo, because their title hopes just may hinge on two players that will be donning the Ateneo jersey in the college ranks for the very first time: Greg Slaughter and Kiefer Ravena.
Both guys should figure very prominently in the Blue Eagles lineup this year. One of the central themes of the upcoming season will be size, with the league getting significantly bigger from the previous years, and that begins with Ateneo and Slaughter, the first true 7-footer Philippine basketball has seen since EJ Feihl.
And Ravena? Well, there isn’t much to say that hasn’t already been said. The kid’s pretty darn good.
The two new Blue Eagles will take time to learn to run what has been a rigid, structured and, ultimately, successful system. For now, the two have been adjusting. But once they get the hang of it, and once the system, too, learns to assimilate the unique skills that these two bring to the table, let’s just say it isn’t hard to see a fourth straight title in the team’s future.
