WITH the loss of the UST’s “Big Three,” a new system under a new coach and no exposure to pre-season tournaments, the Growling Tigers have their backs against the wall as the rest of the UAAP bolster their lineups.
The Tigers need to fill a huge void in the scoring department with the departure of its main gunners Kevin Ferrer, Ed Daquioag and Karim Abdul who were responsible for 46.9 points of the Tigers’ 73.9 points per game (ppg) last season.
“Almost half ng team], rookie. Lahat sophomore which is hindi naglaro noong last year. Basically, mga nakaupo lang sa bench yan,” UST head coach Boy Sablan told the Varsitarian.
Last year’s lineup relied heavily on their starting unit which normed 27.34 minutes of play. Marvin Lee, Mario Bonleon and veteran forward Kent Lao were the only other players to log in double-digit minutes.
Lao, who will play his last season for the Tigers as one of the team’s oldest members, played 17.1 minutes per game last season but only averaged 3.4 ppg.
However, veterans Louie Vigil and Jamil Sheriff, who were deemed ineligible to play due to the supposed implementation of the new age limit of 24 next season, are now allowed to suit up for the Tigers for the last time, following the UAAP board’s decision to return to the old ruling of a 25-year-old age limit. Both players are turning 25 next season.
Vigil scored 9.3 ppg last season, the highest aside from Ferrer, Abdul and Daquioag, while shooting 40 percent from the field.
Sheriff provides stability in the point position with a 2.1:.07 assist-to-turnover ratio the previous year.
New system
The Tigers only resumed formal training last June after Sablan’s appointment and will need to adjust in a running system the former Blackwater assistant coach plans to employ.
“`Yung Tigers ngayon, different outlook kasi ang gusto ko, running game, takbuhan. I’m more of a defensive coach pero gusto ko sa opensa, more on running,” Sablan said.
The new mentor added that he was still observing the team’s capabilities and might experiment on different positions as the young Growling Tigers looked to focus on a balanced-scoring scheme.
“Walang superstar dito. Lahat ‘yan pantay-pantay, walang single player na sasabihin na, ‘Ako scorer dito,’ ayoko ng ganun. Equal distribution lahat.”
With three months before the University hosts Season 79, the Tigers have a lot of ground to cover after missing the Filoil Flying V and the Father Martin preseason tournaments due to conflicts in their coaching staff.
However, the team will travel to Taiwan to participate in a tournament in August.
Meanwhile, the Tigers will boast of a new slotman this coming season with long-time center Karim Abdul exhausting his playing years.
William Afoakwah, a transferee from De La Salle University who has been with the team for three years, will take the reins from Abdul.
“I’m ready to give what I’ve learned [and] I think I’m ready to go,” the physical education and wellness student said.
With this year’s lineup being depleted in terms of player experience and UST’s off-season marred with controversies, Sablan remains optimistic that the Tigers will give other universities a good fight.
“Lalaban tayo. Simpleng-simple lang sinasabi ko sa mga players ko. Lalaban tayo hanggang dulo. Hanggang dulo kami lahat, gagawin namin, tina-trabaho namin araw araw,” Sablan said.
