UP Fighting Maroons’ Malick Diouf. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines—University of the Philippines’ Malick Diouf is set to be named the UAAP Season 85 men’s basketball tournament MVP after topping the statistical points race at the end of the elimination round.
Diouf bested Ateneo’s Forthsky Padrigao and Ange Kouame in the MVP race with 73.857 SPs while Padrigao tallied 71.571 and Kouame 70.786.
As it stands, the mythical team in the men’s division would comprise Diouf, Padrigao, University of the East’s Luis Villegas (69.857), Dave Ildefonso of Ateneo (64.929) and Carl Tamayo of UP (63.429).
First round SPs leader Schonny Winston of La Salle dropped to No. 9 in the MVP race after missing several games in the second round due to a nagging calf injury.
His teammate Kevin Quiambao, though, is set to be named the Rookie of the Year award with 56.52 SPs.
In the women’s division, University of Santo Tomas’s Eka Soriano snagged the league MVP honors by a landslide with 92.286 SPs.
The mythical five in women’s play is set to be Soriano, Ateneo’s Kacey Dela Rosa (77.0) and Jhazmin Joson (74.714), Adamson’s Victoria Adeshina (72.214) and fellow Growling Tigress Tacky Tacatac (73.429).
Soriano and UST will face the De La Salle Lady Archers in a do-or-die game to determine who will head to the Finals while Diouf and the Fighting Maroons have a date with National University in the Final Four.