Cashing in on mayhem

Ben Mbala (23), Jeron Teng and the rest of the Archers on the court plan an offensive play as coach Aldin Ayo (kneeling at right) looks on. “We all have the roles and a game plan to play as a team,” says Mbala. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

A championship run can have so many turning points. For the newly minted kings of UAAP basketball, La Salle’s Green Archers, there were countless episodes in which they were pushed to the limit. Theirs was a title campaign littered with doubts, heartbreaks and sheer physical and emotional tests.

With one of the strongest lineups the league has ever seen, the Archers carried the burden of expectation all season long like a heavy cross. Each victory was met with relief, more than joy. And it wasn’t until the final buzzer sounded at Smart Araneta Coliseum last Wednesday that they finally got to bask in the glow of a spectacular season where they lost just once in 17 games.

The 79-72 championship-clinching win at the expense of fierce rival Ateneo before 17,425 fans was a showcase of the Archers’ happy transformation.

Sure, there were highlight reels like the scintillating shooting of Jeron Teng to start the game, season Most Valuable Player Ben Mbala’s two-handed slam off a Teng miss late in the fourth quarter, and Aljun Melecio switching hands in mid-air for a left-handed layup, challenging the defense of Ateneo star Thirdy Ravena who had terrorized foes with chase-down blocks this season. But the way the Archers overcame their own demons and ultimately dissected the Eagles made victory even sweeter for La Salle.

Plenty of times during the course of the season, the Archers were forced to look at themselves and left to figure out why they still couldn’t play to their potential.

“I think this was the game where we really played as a team and fought for each other,” says point guard Kib Montalbo, who hit three triples and got three steals in Game 2. “We worked hard. We were unselfish. The ball movement was beautiful.”

Mbala, who finished the season with 17 double-doubles in points and rebounds, says they went through “hell” to be at the level they were playing in the finals. During the summer, practices started at 5:30 a.m. with the team starting their day with sprints at the Cultural Center of the Philippines complex. Three-hour practices, shooting drills and countless hours studying film kept the players on their toes.

“There was no reason for us not to improve,” coach Aldin Ayo says. “The support was there. It was just a matter of us committing to getting better and playing for each other.”

The preseason gave the rest of the UAAP a glimpse of La Salle’s potential to destroy opponents when they ruled the FilOil Flying V Premier Cup. But slowly, teams were figuring out a way to beat the Archers. Ayo recalls a preseason game played behind closed doors where the Archers got a spanking from the National University Bulldogs.

A few days earlier, the Archers figured in a highly physical duel with the Far Eastern University Tamaraws—an exhibition game that was stopped to prevent a free-for-all ensuing.

“We learned to stand up for each other against FEU,” says Ayo. “Against NU, we learned that if we weren’t going to play together, we were not going to win, regardless of how talented this team is.”

Bringing in his “Mayhem” system, which puts emphasis on a pressure defense, the youthful mentor demanded perfection from his team. The demands of the offensive system also required them to share the ball more, which meant that the likes of Teng and Mbala needed to sacrifice shots in lieu of open looks for their teammates.

“He was able to make us understand that we all have the roles and a game plan to play as a team,” Mbala says of Ayo. Save for the close shaves against FEU and NU, La Salle blitzed through the first 12 games of the season, living up to the hype. The league was feeling the full brunt of “Mayhem.”

“The first round was really just a showcase of our talents,” says Mbala. “But at some point, we had to stick to our game plan.”

The first sign of adversity came in early November, when Ateneo crushed La Salle’s aura of invincibility with a 93-81 win, denying the Archers a sweep of the elimination round. And Ayo was hard on himself after the defeat. “That was a loss that makes you ponder where you started with your career and how much you’ve struggled to reach this level,” he says. “At La Salle, expectations are high and with that loss, it felt like we lost everything.”

The Archers still finished with the No. 1 seeding heading into the Final Four, where they faced the upstart Adamson Falcons. The game was far from pretty. The Archers only had three assists in a 69-64 win. Ayo took his players to task for their selfish play.

The response came 10 days later in Game 1 against Ateneo where the Archers eked out a 67-65 victory, again thanks to Teng’s late-game heroics, at Mall of Asia Arena. Picking up from where he left off in Game 1, Teng hit the Archers’ first eight points in Game 2. Ayo marvelled at the way his team executed offensively, staying disciplined even when the Eagles were starting to make headway.

“I saw them really surrender to the system,” Ayo says.

A surprise visit from Ginebra coach Tim Cone, the most successful mentor in the PBA, on the eve of Game 2 also helped the Archers get over the hump. Cone spent four hours with the Archers, answering questions from the players and the coaching staff in their hotel beside the Big Dome. “His presence meant a lot to us,” Ayo says. “The players left the meeting inspired and confident.”

As the Archers whooped it up on the court, Teng sought fellow senior Thomas Torres and embraced him. They were part of the team that won the title in 2013, along with Jason Perkins, who battled through injuries all season long. “It’s a great feeling to leave La Salle a champion,” says Perkins. Also leaving La Salle a winner is swingman Julian Sargent.

The crown also gave Ayo the distinction as the first coach to have nailed titles in two major collegiate leagues. The accomplishment means so much to Ayo, who admits his personal life was in limbo when he took the La Salle job, fresh from leading Letran to the NCAA title. The squad he was about to coach wasn’t exactly in disarray, but an underwhelming performance in UAAP Season 78 prompted a coaching change.

With the Archers missing out on the Final Four, chief backer Eduardo “Danding” Cojuangco looked for a replacement for Juno Sauler in anticipation of a season where La Salle would field their strongest team in years.

Montalbo, who was working his way back to fitness after an ACL tear sidelined him for the season, felt excitement as soon as Ayo gathered the Archers for the first time in that late November meeting at New World Hotel.

“He told us about equal opportunities in his system,” recalls Montalbo.

The euphoria of Letran’s win had yet to subside when Ayo accepted the La Salle role for a lucrative three-year deal worth P9 million. He was criticized for his decision by people who questioned his character and loyalty.

“I love basketball and the challenge it brings,” says Ayo, a virtual unknown in the coaching circles before he took on the Letran job. “I want to test my limits. I want to reach the top.”

More than a year after they first met, Ayo and the rest of the Archers accomplished that mission. In style.