Still a lot to learn, says Ayo

MANILA, Philippines - La Salle senior men’s basketball coach Aldin Ayo said the other day he’s not putting any weight on earlybird forecasts that the Green Archers are the team to beat in the UAAP this season even as the Taft Avenue squad swept the Filoil Flying V league with a 10-0 record over the weekend.

“We still have a lot to learn,” said Ayo who took over the Archers helm from Juno Sauler after leading Letran to the NCAA crown last season. “Our ultimate goal is to win the championship of our mother league, the UAAP. Of course, winning the Filoil title is gratifying, particularly because the boys worked hard for it and deserved the victory. But it’s just the beginning of our journey.”

The Archers encountered a shaky start when Ayo introduced his approach of “mayhem” basketball to La Salle. He challenged the players to buy into a defensive system anchored on a variety of press formations. It meant playing at a breakneck pace with a high level of discipline. Ayo likened it to playing “desperate.” To get the players used to the Spartan style, Ayo rescheduled practice from late afternoon to 6 a.m. so everybody’s up by 4:30 a.m. and in the gym stretching by 5:30 a.m. A former seminarian, Ayo also preached the gospel of Christian unity, getting the players and coaches to attend Mass every Sunday morning just before practice.

“When we play a game, we want our players to leave it all on the floor, we want everyone exhausted,” he said. “We’re prepared to play our pace for 45 minutes, including five in case we go to overtime. If anyone gets tired, it’s the fault of our conditioning coach because every player must be ready to go full speed. We want to outwork our opponents every single game.”

Conditioning coach Marlon Celis, who was sent to Australia on an individualized three-week training course by La Salle patron Ambassador Danding Cojuangco last year, has gone the extra mile to prepare the players for Ayo’s requirements.

When La Salle played its first preseason tournament at the TIP Invitationals a few months back, winning was hard to come by. The Archers lost to NU, 78-73, UE in overtime, San Beda and even to unheralded St. Claire, 112-110, despite 46 points from Ben Mbala and Jeron Teng. But as the Archers got more familiar with Ayo’s system, winning became less difficult. They were unbeaten in bagging the Araw Ng Dabaw crown in Davao City then went untainted in claiming the Filoil diadem by an average margin of 14.4 points.

It was La Salle’s fourth Filoil championship in the 11-year history of the preseason league and the Archers’ fourth appearance in the last five finals. Last season, San Beda crushed the Archers, 79-53, in the title showdown. La Salle previously won in 2006, 2007 and 2014.

Last Sunday’s final against Arellano University was no walk in the park for La Salle. Arellano led by twin digits in the second quarter and took the half, 42-40. But the Archers clamped down on defense and tired out the Chiefs in the homestretch to win, 86-74. La Salle held Arellano to 16 points in each of the last three quarters. It was a similar come-from-behind victory for La Salle over San Beda in the eliminations where the Archers overcame a seven-point halftime deficit to win, 94-85.

Teng sprained his left ankle in La Salle’s 91-71 quarterfinal win over FEU and was hobbled until the end of the tournament. Against Ateneo in the semifinals, Teng went scoreless in 15 minutes but five Archers hit in double figures to lift La Salle to a 92-77 decision.

In the final, Teng was still in pain yet scored 13 points in a courageous 27-minute effort. Mbala picked up the cudgels and delivered 28 points, 26 rebounds, two assists and eight blocked shots in a monster performance. Power forward Abu Tratter, a Laguna-born Fil-Am whose Filipino mother Sony flew in from the US to watch her son play, had 13 points and 11 boards to justify his spot in the league’s Mythical First Team.

Mbala, who turns 21 on July 13, said individual honors were farthest from his mind throughout the tournament. “We work as a team, we’re like one family,” he said. “I do what coach Aldin wants me to do and I wouldn’t be able to do what I do without the support of my teammates. This championship is for our school, the La Sallian community, Boss Danding and our supporters.” Mbala took the MVP and Best Defender awards for his performance over 10 games.

Ayo was particularly excited for his mother Eduarda who had never watched any of his games in Manila until the Filoil semifinals and final.