Lions face tough title defense
San Beda is expected to encounter stiff resistance in its bid for a third straight crown with Lyceum and Letran expected to give the Red Lions all that they can handle when NCAA Season 94 rolls off on Saturday at Mall of Asia Arena.
San Beda coach Boyet Fernandez has kept the core of their championship-winning squad, while adding more height to their frontline with Nigerian Eugene Toba, who was selected ahead of Cameroonian Arnauld Noah as the second foreign player with Donald Tankoua.
Robert Bolick, Javee Mocon and AC Soberano are all returning for another tour of duty for the Lions, who won a 10th title in 12 years last season.
“Of course, the expectation is to always win [the championship],” said Fernandez during the press conference launching the league’s new season at MoA Arena on Tuesday.
“But it’s going to be tough because all of the teams improved this year. Lyceum has the same lineup as last year, Letran has been improving a lot and you don’t count out Perpetual. Coach Frankie (Lim) is there it will be a different team. St. Benilde has gotten better.”
The Pirates, who swept the elimination round before losing to the Lions in the Finals in two games, will be armed with more experience following championship runs in the Philippine Collegiate Champions League and the PBA D-League.
“We’re all about continuing what we’ve started last season,” said Lyceum coach Topex Robinson.
“We want to build on our vision and take our basketball to the next level. We don’t want to be just one and done. There’s so much we can improve on.”
