Jeron Teng INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
More than just his scoring explosion, Jeron Teng’s game smarts also came in full view in the blockbuster battle that had La Salle exacting revenge on fierce foe Ateneo on Sunday in the UAAP men’s basketball tournament.
Teng got off to a blistering start in a 32-point performance spiked with six rebounds and five assists, but La Salle coach Juno Sauler said his star player also deserves credit for his team play.
“[Ateneo’s] defense started to adjust on Jeron in the second half and he made very good reads; he involved his teammates,” said Sauler. “The reason the other guys were scoring was not because of the openings they got, but because of Jeron recognizing the defense.”
The Green Archers zoomed to early double-digit leads before fending off the Blue Eagles’ late rally in an 88-86 win, where Teng also outshone Ateneo ace and season MVP rival Kiefer Ravena.
While stretching their winning streak to six games, the defending champions also avenged their first-round loss to the Eagles, 86-97.
But more importantly, the Archers tied the Eagles and the Far Eastern U Tamaraws for top spot at 6-2.
“Jeron played well and killed us in the first half,” Ravena said of Teng, who is running second in the MVP race.
“I think they really started well with Jeron,” added Ateneo coach Bo Perasol.
Teng, named as the UAAP Press Corps-Accel Quantum Plus/3XVI Player of the Week, ranked second in the MVP race at the end of the first round with averages of 15 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists.
“I just tried to look for my open teammates,” said Teng as Jason Perkins, Robert Bolick and rookies Julian Sargent and Prince Rivero also came through for the Archers.
“He’s our team captain and he’s been the leader for the team,” Sauler said of Teng. “He makes sure that everyone’s focused. He helps us a lot in that department.”