By the Numbers: Sept. 18-22

By Paolo Mariano Posted Sep 23rd 2013

What a week it was for the UAAP. First off, Far Eastern University’s (FEU) alpha dog Terrence Romeo was named season MVP after amassing the most statistical points (75.28) at the end of the elimination round. Then, the University of Santo Tomas (UST) edged Ateneo de Manila University for the last Final Four berth, dashing the Blue Eagles’ hopes for a six-peat. De La Salle University, meanwhile, continued its mean streak to eight straight Ws after toppling FEU for the all-important twice-to-beat edge in the semifinals. Finally, the Growling Tigers followed up their momentum-building triumph over Ateneo with a rousing victory over National University (NU) to pump more life in their once-flatlining season.    

1998

The last time Ateneo failed to advance to the Final Four. The Blue Eagles’ record streak of most consecutive semifinals trips was cut at 14 after losing to UST in their win-or-go-home affair last Wednesday. The 1998 squad finished at sixth place with a 5-9 record. The team was spearheaded by Rainier Sison and Ryan Pamintuan and rookies Enrico Villanueva and Wesley Gonzales. They were coached by Mark Molina, who is now FEU’s athletic director.  

13

The number of players who didn’t score a single point the entire season. The undesirable list includes Adamson University’s Matthew Bernabe and Dawn Ochea, Ateneo’s Anton Asistio, Gideon Babilonia, and Earl Murphy, FEU’s Jovanie Luz, La Salle’s Robert Bolick, NU’s Cedrick Labing-isa, University of the East’s Luis Pujante and Leo Guion, and UST’s Jan Macasaet, Robin Tan, and Edcor Marata. Among them, nine are in their first year in the league.

11

The number of times La Salle has earned the twice-to-beat advantage in the Final Four—the most by any team in the league. With their victory over FEU last Saturday, the Green Archers have now claimed the second seed thrice and the top spot eight times. They have yet to miss the Finals when holding the incentive so history isn’t on the side of the Tamaraws. FEU has twice made it to the Last Dance despite being the lower seed: in 2000 and 2011.

4

The number of fourth seed teams to force a do-or-die match against the top seed in the Final Four. UST became the latest to do so after its huge win over NU yesterday. The other squads to do it are FEU in 1995 vs. UST, University of the Philippines in 1997 vs. FEU, and UST vs. La Salle in 1998. La Salle did it vs. Ateneo in 2003 but was forfeited. Extending the series is just the first step though. In fact, no fourth seed has advanced to the Finals.

3

The number of players who have won both Rookie of the Year and MVP awards in the Final Four era. Romeo is the latest inclusion to the exclusive list, which also includes Ateneo’s Villanueva and FEU’s Arwind Santos. The former was named best newcomer in 1998 and MVP in 2002, while the latter won ROY in 2002 and MVP in 2004 and 2005. The 21-year-old Romeo is the youngest among the three to claim the league’s top individual honor.