Altas ripe for crown, says MVP

Winning the Most Valuable Player award in the 90th NCAA basketball tournament has fueled the desire of Perpetual Help’s Earl Scottie Thompson to finally lead the Altas to a first championship next season.

The standout from Digos, Davao del Sur, has set his sights on ending the string of heartbreaks the Altas have suffered the past three years in the Final Four.

San Beda again showed Perpetual Help the door with an 81-75 win last Wednesday, and while the MVP plum has eased the pain somewhat, Thompson has declared his desire to win it all in his final playing year in Season 91.

“I will do everything I can to bring the championship to Perpetual Help,” said Thompson, who averaged 17 points per game, 11.3 rebounds and 5.5 assists.
What makes Thompson’s rise even more remarkable is the fact that he wasn’t even a touted recruit after finishing high school.

“San Beda wanted to recruit me, but for its high school team. Only Perpetual Help wanted me to be in the college team,” said Thompson.

Thompson will have an even larger role next season following the graduation of Justin Alano, Harold Arboleda and Juneric Baloria.

“We start from scratch but we will work hard to be competitive,” Thompson said.