Ben Mbala. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/ INQUIRER.net
For all of Ateneo’s brilliance in the elimination round and gutsy performance in the Final Four against Far Eastern U, one player still casts a huge shadow over the UAAP Season 80 Finals starting this Saturday at Mall of Asia Arena.
La Salle’s Ben Mbala, who is set to pick up a second straight Most Valuable Player trophy, looms as the biggest stumbling block to the Blue Eagles’ bid for a first title since 2012 when the fierce rivals collide in another blockbuster series.
“Mbala” was the first word uttered by Ateneo assistant coach Sandy Arespacochaga when asked on his thoughts of facing the Green Archers in the Finals just moments after the Eagles survived the Tamaraws, 88-84, in overtime on Wednesday.
“That’s the first name we got to handle. We have to find a way to stay out of foul trouble against Mbala,” Arespacochaga added.
Isaac Go and Chiz Ikeh took turns in guarding Mbala, but the strong and athletic forward still got away with 28 points and 19 rebounds in La Salle’s 79-76 second-round win over Ateneo last Nov. 12. Mbala also added six steals and six blocks in another dominant performance.
Although his rebounding is down from 16 boards to 13.1 per game this season, the hulking Cameroonian has turned into an even lethal scorer, averaging 26 points in 12 games, up from 20.6 points an outing in the previous season.
But the Eagles will also have to deal with the likes of Ricci Rivero, Aljun Melecio and Santi Santillan in the Finals.
Rivero in particular has become a key contributor, filling the void left by Jeron Teng as the secondary scorer with 14.1 points per game in the elimination round—a marked improvement from his 5.5 points an outing average from Season 79.
“We’re saying that La Salle’s not a one-man team,” said Arespacochaga. “They’re a good team. There’s a reason why they’re in the Finals, why they’re waiting in the Finals, they’re the defending champs. So we have no illusions that it’s gonna be an easy game for us (in the Finals).”