Mbala erupts for 32 as La Salle barges into semis with FEU rout

Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

De La Salle secured a spot in the semifinals of the Filoil Flying V Preseason Premier Cup with an 78-53 dismantling of Far Eastern University in the quarterfinals Wednesday at the tournament’s namesake arena in San Juan.

The Green Archers let loose in the first quarter building a 20-11 lead and the defending UAAP champions never relented from there against the Tamaraws.

Hulking center Ben Mbala was too much for FEU as he put up 32 points and 19 rebounds much to the delight of the Green Archers.

Although Mbala seemed to carry much of La Salle’s offense, head coach Aldin Ayo thinks otherwise.

“It’s not just Ben who carried the load,” said Ayo. “All of the players are motivated because this is the quarterfinals, and this is a knockout game. They all have this sense of urgency to win.”

Apart from Mbala, there were four other Green Archers who scored more than 10 points.

Aljun Melecio ran the point for La Salle and he finished with 13 points, seven assists, and three steals while Ricci Rivero and Andrei Caracut had 13 and 11 points, respectively.

Arvin Tolentino and Richard Escoto led the Tamaraws with 10 points apiece.