UAAP season 87

[maroonforlife2]

There is a two week break before the final four starts. Maybe that’s what UP needs to reset. On the other side, as a La Salle supporter I hate this break because it will halt their momentum. Imagine playing your last game of the eliminations on November 13, and not playing again until December 4. Wild.

UP’s recruits this year have unfortunately stunted the development of the other players. QMB’s arrival means it’s essentially two years on the bench for Sean Alter. Bayla took away minutes from guys like Alarcon and even Chicco Briones. I still believe the Bayla recruitment was a move UP didn’t need to make, when they could have just developed what they already have.

Good point on Bayla. He took up Alarcon's starting spot from the get go when he should have been coming off from the bench and slowly integrated with the team. My guess is that there's an unwritten agreement for him to get starter minutes for him to commit to UP.

Is the two week break between elims and Final Four due to Gilas?

 

[cha342]

Don't get me wrong and as a UP supporter, I would love to be proven wrong by this current squad but I just don't see how you flip a switch late into the season. Agree on how they play is within their control but their execution has been really off and you see it in the results (lots of TOs, horrible shooting). For such a strong team that has been a perennial contender the past few years, that is totally inexcusable.

It's really night and day when you see how DLSU executes (i.e. there are plays designed to free up their shooters, players know their roles - Raven, Macalalag, Vhoris, Dungo, Gollena are all high quality players). Then of course, you have the difference makers in KQ and Mike. The only real weakness in DLSU's lineup are probably Henry and Ramiro lmao

People are overreacting to UP's two-game skid, forgetting how strong they've been all season, including their dominant first-round performance.

Meanwhile, DLSU's struggles are hard to ignore—they needed a moving screen from Mike to beat NU and lost to UE. Losing to UE, really?

Social media amplifies panic, but remember, DLSU fans once called for RDJ's retirement after a loss to NU, and they bounced back to win gold again. So, let's not write off UP just yet; they’ve had an excellent off season and have been exceptional overall. A two-game slump doesn’t define their season.

 

[Tuck2]

Alarcon and Bayla play the 2/3 they can play together. Alarcon has been bothered by an achilies / calf . Probably the whole season by now.

Also if you beat a team twice and finish the Regular season 13-1 you are the favorites lol.

 

[Crustacean2]

Is the two week break between elims and Final Four due to Gilas?

Yes.

It's actually close to three weeks for DLSU since the last elimination round game of DLSU will be tomorrow, November 13. UP, UE and Adamson still have their postponed game to play, while UST's last elimination round game will be on November 16, Saturday.

 

[Crustacean2]

People are overreacting to UP's two-game skid, forgetting how strong they've been all season, including their dominant first-round performance.

Meanwhile, DLSU's struggles are hard to ignore—they needed a moving screen from Mike to beat NU and lost to UE. Losing to UE, really?

Social media amplifies panic, but remember, DLSU fans once called for RDJ's retirement after a loss to NU, and they bounced back to win gold again. So, let's not write off UP just yet; they’ve had an excellent off season and have been exceptional overall. A two-game slump doesn’t define their season.

That is why maroonforlife mentioned "this late in this season". DLSU's struggles happened early on, and they had plenty of time to correct and adjust.

The issue is UP is struggling late in the season, and there may not be enough time to correct. However, since there is a 2-3 week break, there's plenty of time for them to do some soul-searching LMAO

 

[cha342]

That is why maroonforlife mentioned "this late in this season". DLSU's struggles happened early on, and they had plenty of time to correct and adjust.

The issue is UP is struggling late in the season, and there may not be enough time to correct. However, since there is a 2-3 week break, there's plenty of time for them to do some soul-searching LMAO

Don'r worry I can read.

I refuse to believe that a team that stacked not be considered the title favorites. Their two game skid is not any indication of the immense talent they possess. It's their season to lose. It's completely within their control how they play moving forward.

The same people over reacting are the same ones that thought UE was an actual threat to DLSU and UP. I called it that UE was overachieving and look at them now. They're struggling to keep up the pace cos of the lack of talent they have whereas UP has all the talent to win it all.

 

[Tuck2]

Don'r worry I can read.

I refuse to believe that a team that stacked not be considered the title favorites. Their two game skid is not any indication of the immense talent they possess. It's their season to lose. It's completely within their control how they play moving forward.

The same people over reacting are the same ones that thought UE was an actual threat to DLSU and UP. I called it that UE was overachieving and look at them now. They're struggling to keep up the pace cos of the lack of talent they have whereas UP has all the talent to win it all.

Talent doesn’t mean as much when none of the said talent can actually shoot. Most of the recruits of UP were highly touted for their potential which they haven’t realized due to the diminishing returns of recruitment. Shooting is a lot of repetition and confidence something they can’t really get there. It’s not the same talent if they can’t play cohesively together since it seems like that they are a bad fit

Bayla is inconsistent , Adabiano has been terrible , Felicilda is 5’7 and can’t shoot at all. Torculas , Lopez really aren’t even being defended in space. It’s really gonna get mucked up.


Dlsu has the best player/ shooter in the league so their spacing is miles better . Macalalag and David are also knockdown shooters this season.

 

[greenarcher2]

Macalalag and Marasigan made Galman dispensable.

 

[Sikatrix2]

Talent doesn’t mean as much when none of the said talent can actually shoot. Most of the recruits of UP were highly touted for their potential which they haven’t realized due to the diminishing returns of recruitment. Shooting is a lot of repetition and confidence something they can’t really get there. It’s not the same talent if they can’t play cohesively together since it seems like that they are a bad fit

Bayla is inconsistent , Adabiano has been terrible , Felicilda is 5’7 and can’t shoot at all. Torculas , Lopez really aren’t even being defended in space. It’s really gonna get mucked up.


Dlsu has the best player/ shooter in the league so their spacing is miles better . Macalalag and David are also knockdown shooters this season.

Some of these blue chippers are ending up being role players. Over the years, I think this is a UAAP wide problem and not limited to UP.

If one wants to play in Korea, you are probably better off being the alpha in the NCAA then a role player in the UAAP.
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[OverratedTabBaldwin2]

Season 87 is La Salle's season to lose. They're probably going to sweep the Final 4 and the Finals. UP is going to get a lot worse in the bigs category when QMB leaves as Alter and Udodo simply aren't top-quality bigs at this point. UP loaded up on "blue-chip" recruits like Bayla, Stevens, and Lopez, they'd ended up with a poorly constructed team. The only players from UP they can rely on decision-making wise are QMB and JD and they're both leaving after season 87.

 

[cha342]

Talent doesn’t mean as much when none of the said talent can actually shoot. Most of the recruits of UP were highly touted for their potential which they haven’t realized due to the diminishing returns of recruitment. Shooting is a lot of repetition and confidence something they can’t really get there. It’s not the same talent if they can’t play cohesively together since it seems like that they are a bad fit

Bayla is inconsistent , Adabiano has been terrible , Felicilda is 5’7 and can’t shoot at all. Torculas , Lopez really aren’t even being defended in space. It’s really gonna get mucked up.


Dlsu has the best player/ shooter in the league so their spacing is miles better . Macalalag and David are also knockdown shooters this season.

This is all within UP’s control. If they lacked shooting skills, they could have focused on recruiting better shooters—just as Topex Robinson did.

When Topex took over the players recruited by Pumaren, he immediately encouraged everyone to shoot threes. Pumaren’s recruits were chosen for their athleticism and speed to fit his style, so Topex adapted, emphasizing shooting. In fact, in one interview, Kuya Ben told the story of when they started training camp, he even had to ask Topex if that meant everyone, including Bright, should shoot threes.

It’s hard to believe that top talents just suddenly lose their skills once they join UP.

Remember, this is the same team Ricci Rivero transferred to. Ricci, who might have been the third-best player on a DLSU squad with standouts like Ben Mbala, Jeron Teng, Jason Perkins, Aljun Melecio, Kib Montalbo, and Justine Baltazar and co. In UP, Ricci’s performance dipped, but now he’s having a strong rookie season in the PBA.

Ultimately, it’s within UP’s control to effectively utilize these players. With that amount of talent on their roster, it's their championship to lose.

 

[thatweirdguy2]

This is all within UP’s control. If they lacked shooting skills, they could have focused on recruiting better shooters—just as Topex Robinson did.

When Topex took over the players recruited by Pumaren, he immediately encouraged everyone to shoot threes. Pumaren’s recruits were chosen for their athleticism and speed to fit his style, so Topex adapted, emphasizing shooting. In fact, in one interview, Kuya Ben told the story of when they started training camp, he even had to ask Topex if that meant everyone, including Bright, should shoot threes.

It’s hard to believe that top talents just suddenly lose their skills once they join UP.

Remember, this is the same team Ricci Rivero transferred to. Ricci, who might have been the third-best player on a DLSU squad with standouts like Ben Mbala, Jeron Teng, Jason Perkins, Aljun Melecio, Kib Montalbo, and Justine Baltazar and co. In UP, Ricci’s performance dipped, but now he’s having a strong rookie season in the PBA.

Ultimately, it’s within UP’s control to effectively utilize these players. With that amount of talent on their roster, it's their championship to lose.

Roster construction matters. Why did they kept adding bigmen when they still have a lot of underdeveloped bigs? Sure QMB is a lot more polished than the Pablos, Gagates and Stevens but they could have played together for a few more years and developed organically with team instead of getting a year rental and mucking up the chemistry. Obviously it's not too late to fix things nad they're still by far the most talented team on paper but some things needs to change.

What's up with Francis Lopez? Is he starting to believe his own hype?

 

[Tuck2]

This is all within UP’s control. If they lacked shooting skills, they could have focused on recruiting better shooters—just as Topex Robinson did.

When Topex took over the players recruited by Pumaren, he immediately encouraged everyone to shoot threes. Pumaren’s recruits were chosen for their athleticism and speed to fit his style, so Topex adapted, emphasizing shooting. In fact, in one interview, Kuya Ben told the story of when they started training camp, he even had to ask Topex if that meant everyone, including Bright, should shoot threes.

It’s hard to believe that top talents just suddenly lose their skills once they join UP.

Remember, this is the same team Ricci Rivero transferred to. Ricci, who might have been the third-best player on a DLSU squad with standouts like Ben Mbala, Jeron Teng, Jason Perkins, Aljun Melecio, Kib Montalbo, and Justine Baltazar and co. In UP, Ricci’s performance dipped, but now he’s having a strong rookie season in the PBA.

Ultimately, it’s within UP’s control to effectively utilize these players. With that amount of talent on their roster, it's their championship to lose.

i don’t think you watched or played HS basketball here in the philippines . There’s almost no shooters here locally at that level.

They are developed if anything. KQ wasn’t exactly a shooter coming out of NU. I think this was also a debate during the time of isaac go and admu. People were praising tab for making his guys shoot 3’s. Ikeh was shooting it’s i think it should be the other way around it’s like 80% on the player and 20% on the coach . Put in the reps and confidence from there playing time .

Also Ricci was never the 3rd best player with Jeron he was barely getting PT with Jeron there. It was only when he graduated he got burn.

 

[OverratedTabBaldwin2]

Sure QMB is a lot more polished than the Pablos, Gagates and Stevens but they could have played together for a few more years and developed organically with team instead of getting a year rental and mucking up the chemistry.

UP is in the "win now" mode. They can't wait for Gagate and Pablo to develop when UP has been so close to winning it all in seasons 85 and 86. UP was able to find a replacement for Diouf with QMB, but they haven't been able to plug the void that Tamayo left. Lopez could've been that guy but he's at least a tier below Tamayo's level when Tamayo was in his final year with UP. Lopez still struggles to create his own shot and he still hasn't developed a reliable outside game. Lopez's IQ is also a few notches lower compared to Tamayo. Cansino leaving was also huge because they don't have a reliable wing play-maker outside of JD.

 

[thatweirdguy2]

UP is in the "win now" mode. They can't wait for Gagate and Pablo to develop when UP has been so close to winning it all in seasons 85 and 86. UP was able to find a replacement for Diouf with QMB, but they haven't been able to plug the void that Tamayo left. Lopez could've been that guy but he's at least a tier below Tamayo's level when Tamayo was in his final year with UP. Lopez still struggles to create his own shot and he still hasn't developed a reliable outside game. Lopez's IQ is also a few notches lower compared to Tamayo. Cansino leaving was also huge because they don't have a reliable wing play-maker outside of JD.

No idea how much they got QMB for but I would have probably allocated that $$ towards better guards/wings. I would have thrown everything at Bahay. They probably could survive with Alter/Stevens/ whoever plus their best FSA ( they have tons)

Also maybe upgrade their coaching staff?

 

[Sikatrix2]

No idea how much they got QMB for but I would have probably allocated that $$ towards better guards/wings. I would have thrown everything at Bahay. They probably could survive with Alter/Stevens/ whoever plus their best FSA ( they have tons)

Also maybe upgrade their coaching staff?

I think the easiest move for UP is to replace Luanzon since right now its the offense that looks broken.

 

[Crustacean2]

No idea how much they got QMB for but I would have probably allocated that $$ towards better guards/wings. I would have thrown everything at Bahay. They probably could survive with Alter/Stevens/ whoever plus their best FSA ( they have tons)

Also maybe upgrade their coaching staff?

They lost Bahay because they decided to bend the rules to have JD play another year.

Just look back at the articles and interviews in early 2023 when Bahay initially committed to UP. Everyone assumed that JD no longer had any playing years left after Season 86, even Bahay himself.

I honestly think UP’s plans changed when they lost a second straight finals series. JD would have probably moved on, and they would have been able to keep Bahay, and Remogat stays in UE.

 

[OverratedTabBaldwin2]

No idea how much they got QMB for but I would have probably allocated that $$ towards better guards/wings. I would have thrown everything at Bahay. They probably could survive with Alter/Stevens/ whoever plus their best FSA ( they have tons)

Also maybe upgrade their coaching staff?

They added Bayla to somewhat address the wing issue, but he's just being utilized as a perimeter defender with a very limited playmaking role. Bayla's lack of shooting also kills UP's spacing and he's basically unplayable with Lopez on the court.

 

[EvanNelle242]

Naka enrol paba si KQ sa La Salle?

 

[Tuck2]

Naka enrol paba si KQ sa La Salle?

nope not this term