By the Numbers: July 17-21

By Paolo Mariano Posted Jul 22nd 2013

To say that this season has been surprising is a bit of an understatement. Not a single being foresaw a 6-0 start for Far Eastern University (FEU). Perhaps even the Tamaraws themselves. Also, no one thought Ateneo de Manila University and De La Salle University would be in the bottom of the team standings—both of which were defeated by University of the East in a span of three days. But that’s what collegiate basketball is all about and hopefully, there will be more unpredictable storylines to come as the first round nears its conclusion.      

48

The combined number of points scored by FEU’s trio of Terrence Romeo, RR Garcia, and Mike Tolomia in their win over University of Santo Tomas (UST) yesterday. Right off the bat, the gung-ho guards were simply too much for UST. They toyed with the defense as they scattered points with a surplus of moves. They delivered more than half of the Tamaraws’ entire output, including teaming up for seven three-pointers in a hot shooting afternoon.

13.0

The scoring average of Ateneo’s Kiefer Ravena in their last two games. “The Phenom” is slowly regaining his killer form as shown in his recent performance, even top-scoring for the Blue Eagles in their morale-boosting win over University of the Philippines (UP) yesterday with 15 points. Although he’s still a bit cautious about his movements, it’s clear that the confidence has returned. A couple of games more and he’ll be back to his unstoppable self.

7.5

The scoring average of UE’s Roi Sumang in the fourth quarter—the most by any player. The spitfire guard really saves his best for last. Crunch time is Sumang time. He knows it’s his main responsibility to carry the Red Warriors in endgame. He demands the ball almost every possession and tries to create opportunities for himself. His production alone is already more than a third of the team’s entire 21.7 scoring average in the final quarter.

5.0

The average winning margin of the six games last week. It truly was a nail-biting and gut-wrenching Week 4 as all the match-ups were only decided in the final minutes. UE won over Ateneo and La Salle by four and two points, respectively, while Adamson University upset NU by a basket. FEU beat NU and UST by a combined 14 markers, while Ateneo downed UP by eight. If the past week is any indication, the league is in for a whirlwind finish.

0

The number of Ateneo players in the top 10 in scoring—the only team not represented in the list. Last season, Ravena, Greg Slaughter, and Nico Salva were fixtures in the scoring ladder, but this time around, none from Loyola is present. Versatile rookie Chris Newsome almost made it though with 14.3 PPG, just a shade shy of 10th placer Karim Abdul (15.0 PPG). The Blue Eagles are scoring by committee with seven players scoring at least 5.0 PPG.