Tight UAAP race looms; UST’s Aljon Mariano earns POW

9:59 pm | Monday, July 23rd, 2012

UST’s Aljon Mariano. Photo by Jan Dizon

MANILA, Philippines—If the first week is any indication, the UAAP men’s basketball tournament this season will be a tight race.

Just when many picked four-time champion Ateneo and host National University as title contenders, both squads have already absorbed their first loss early in the season.

Far Eastern University came out as the only unbeaten squad, yet its first two triumphs were also far from convincing.

“We could have been at 0-2 right now,” FEU coach Bert Flores said of his Tamaraws, who won their first two assignments by just an average of 1.5 points.

“Lahat tsamba (We were just lucky). We still have a lot of things to work on, like our defense and rebounding.”

Ateneo also saw its bid for a fifth straight championship off to a rough start as the Blue Eagles, in a surprise meltdown, blew a 19-point lead and took a 71-70 loss from University of Santo Tomas.

“I reminded the players that our offense may be up and down, but our defense should be consistent,” coach Norman Black said after his Blue Eagles fiercely rebounded with an 89-65 rout of the Bulldogs.

“Whenever we go out in a game, we just have to focus on our defense just in case our offense isn’t clicking.”

The Tamaraws grabbed the solo lead at 2-0 after four playdates, followed by Ateneo and La Salle with similar 2-1 records.

The Bulldogs, tagged among the favorites after a strong summer run, wound up tied with the Tigers at 1-1.

Meanwhile, UST forward Aljon Mariano bagged the UAAP Press Corps Player of the Week award after starring in the biggest upset yet of the tournament.

Mariano, who sat out last year due to a fractured right ankle, unloaded 21 points and grabbed 13 rebounds in the Tigers’ surprise win.

“When I came back, I really wanted to make a strong impact,” said the 6-foot-3 Mariano, who earned the citation given by sportswriters covering the collegiate beat and Accel 3XVI.

Mariano edged other top performers for the week including FEU’s Terrence Romeo, Ateneo’s Nico Salva, NU’s Ray Parks and La Salle’s Jeron Teng.

Recent Stories:

Complete stories on our Digital Edition newsstand for tablets, netbooks and mobile phones; 14-issue free trial. About to step out? Get breaking alerts on your mobile.phone. Text ON INQ BREAKING to 4467, for Globe, Smart and Sun subscribers in the Philippines.

Tags: Aljon Mariano , Basketball , UAAP , UAAP men’s basketball tournament , UST Growling Tigers

http://profile.yahoo.com/ACUNKUWC6RHSS3AEX2WEPWBXJE James

Just wondering: Why are schools, sports organizations and the whole country so hyped with basketball? The players turn pro and get lucrative pay. And when it comes to the international stage as the Asian Games and the Olympics, these players have not made an impact! They are kulelat! Filipinos do not have the height advantage! Yong mga matatangkad ay slow-foot naman!

If Filipinos are known for being maporma, why don’t sports officials train athletes in diving where height and muscles are not not of utmost importance? Why don’t sports officials scout and train athletes for the Olympics 8 years from now? Of course, they should give incentives! The problem most probably is: There is no money and resources; if there are, these go to the corrupt officials and not to the program and athletes.

For the past 2 Olympics, the Philippines was cited as one among the countries with a large population but with a FAT ZERO Olympic medal.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_BAILOH47IAC7D2XUDC7AQSSIU4 Wee

Dlsu’s loss to Ateneo clearly showed the quality of recruitment that got lost during the Pumaren later years. Bro Bernie should note this. There was too much focus on name tags like RP Youth team, Juniors MVP’s, etc. Nothing wrong with that except that these name-tagged guys need to be developed further. What can Yturri, and other asst coaches teach these next-gen superstars, eh hindi naman sila ganun rin kagagaling during their prime? Hiring Limpot and the other current asst coaches this year is a new action for Dlsu and those efforts will take time to bring the results. Needed is a legitimate shooting coach. The big guys have to be taught proper form sa free throw and converting quick passes during transitions or quick assists around the basket, yung tipong walang “looking-good” na porma, bottomline is they connect the shot. Ala Cardona ba. My sense says the good guys are always looking for the shots they are comfortable with, that wont work always because Dlsu has good guards who will always look to pass even under tight conditions. So the big guys need to convert those passes.

Remember, al Hussaini. Norman Black had one-on-one workouts with him, talagang pinagtyagaan.

Dlsu needs 3-4 shooters from beyond the arc to free the inside.Dela Paz can be one but he needs to build muscles, tumitilapon sya sa mga bangaan sa ere.Imagine getting at least 2 3-pointers from those shooters, that’s already 24 points without any sweat!

Dlsu needs 2-3 more slashers aside kay Teng and Revilla. Tampus and the recruit from Cebu (which they snatched from Ateneo) could be candidates. Plays should be provided for slashers.

That 6’8 guy needs to be taught defense positioning at mandaya sa depensa. I think he wants to show Slaughter that Slaughter cannot impose on him but Slaughter exactly did that. Kaya 6’8 guy needs to be more effective. He is athletic and masipag. He needs to be trained and use his head, not just brawn.
Platypus09

Someone has to topple Ateneo’s formidable squad.

Good job Mariano. Good job UST.

Ateneo will remain strong, but UST and other teams have to work and train hard to beat the defending champions.

Tight UAAP race looms; UST’s Aljon Mariano earns POW

News

Sports

Lifestyle

Entertainment

Business

Technology

Opinion

Global Nation