MANILA, Philippines—Brandon Bates has created a name for himself as some sort of a bruiser for De La Salle, using his hefty 6-foot-7 frame to throw his weight around in the paint this UAAP Season 82 men’s basketball tournament.
The Green Archers’ center has not had trouble against opposing big men but he had his difficulties against University of Santo Tomas’ Soulemane Chabi Yo.
Bates finished with 10 points and 15 rebounds, with eight of his boards coming off the offensive glass, pushing harder knowing he had to go the extra mile against the smaller Chabi Yo.
“I know they’re smaller than me, I don’t really want to say that but I just want to use my height as an advantage because it’s always tough against UST,” said Bates after La Salle’s 80-79 win Wednesday at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
“You got to hit them right back, you can’t back down, that’s it.”
Chabi Yo stands at 6-foot-4 and is a natural small forward but due to the Growling Tigers’ lack of size up front, he has to play the center position.
UST’s skillful big also had a double-double of 17 points and 17 boards, better numbers than Bates’ but the group result was of bigger importance for the Green Archers.
La Salle stayed alive for the Final Four improving to a 6-6 record while UST dropped to 7-6 and failed to lock up a slot in the semifinals.
Bates said that the pain from missing the Final Four in Season 81 still lingers.
“We’ve all been in that situation before and I’m sure they’ve experienced that in their own way,” said Bates. “We should play with a chip on our shoulder so we’ll take it one step at a time.”