KEVIN Quiambao promises to unleash his might and prove his mettle as the rightful Most Valuable Player (MVP) as De La Salle University (DLSU) fights to stay alive on his coronation day.
The soon-to-be University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 86 MVP said people can count an entirely different Mr. Quiambao in Game 2 compared to a forgettable outing in Game 1 when the Green Archers were decimated by the in-form University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons, 97-67.
It’s the most lopsided Game 1 in the UAAP Final Four era as Mr. Quiambao admitted being disappointed with his performance in De La Salle’s deflating 30-point defeat in their first-ever UAAP finale date with UP.
Mr. Quiambao shot only four-of-10 from the field in 31 minutes of play and had a -22 efficiency as the triple-double threat forward struggled against a bevy of defenders thrown at him by the Fighting Maroons led by his former National University high school teammate Reyland Torres.
Mr. Quiambao averaged 16.7 points, 10.9 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 1.9 steals in almost 30 minutes of play in 14 games to win MVP with 97. 0 statistical points. He led second-place Rey Remogat (85.9) by over 11 SPs for a runaway fashion.
He’s set to be awarded tomorrow as the first local MVP since Ateneo’s Kiefer Ravena in 2014 and 2015 and the first local Green Archer since Don Allado’s back-to-back feat in 1998 and 1999
The last Green Archer to win MVP was Ben Mbala in 2016, which also happened to be De La Salle’s last UAAP championship.
Just two days before De La Salle’s finals stint, the four-peat champion teams of the Green Archers in 1998 to 2001 and in 2016 were feted in the ring ceremony at the school campus with the current team also gracing the event.
It’s now on Mr. Quiambao and the crew of coach Topex Robinson to turn that as a motivation as the Green Archers eye payback in Game 2 to force a winner-take-all duel. — John Bryan Ulanday