Miracle Archers owe it to Man upstairs

MANILA, Philippines - It didn’t seem probable that De La Salle University would capture the UAAP senior men’s basketball championship this season. Over a month before hostilities began, veteran Archer frontliner Yutien Andrada went down with an ACL injury in his right knee. Only three weeks before the opener, coach Gee Abanilla was recalled to his mother team Petron in the PBA and assistant Juno Sauler took over, scrambling to install a new system with twice-a-day practices.

Then, the Archers raised a lot of eyebrows when Sauler submitted a lean 13-man roster as critics wondered if the shortage of players would backfire in the depth department. The lineup included four rookies, namely Jason Perkins, Matt Salem, Kib Montalbo and Robert Bolick, fueling speculation that the inexperience would badly dampen La Salle’s chances to even duplicate its fourth place finish last year.

Things got even murkier when La Salle struggled in the first round, posting a 3-4 record with two overtime losses to FEU and UST, a two-point setback to UE and a 63-56 defeat to NU. But slowly, Sauler turned it around. The Archers never gave up hope, kept the faith and refused to lose. In a startling recovery, La Salle swept the second round and finished the eliminations in a triple tie with NU and FEU. NU claimed pole position on the basis of the highest quotient and La Salle beat FEU, 74-69, in a playoff to gain a twice-to-beat advantage over the Tamaraws in the Final Four.

The Archers eliminated FEU, 71-68, in the semifinals and advanced to play UST in the best-of-three title duel. Beating FEU thrice in a row from the second round to the semifinals had to be a feat considering the Tams opened the season with a 7-0 record. It showed La Salle’s character in finding ways to win under difficult conditions.

In the Finals, UST drew first blood, 73-72, last Oct. 2. The Archers leveled the count, 77-70, in Game 2 and clinched the title via a 71-69 overtime win before over 23,000 fans at the Mall of Asia Arena last Saturday. The path to victory was reminiscent of La Salle’s triumph over UST in the 1999 Finals where the Tigers took Game 1, 62-60, the Archers won Game 2, 81-74, and Game 3, 78-75 in extension. It was déjà vu 14 years later, a case of history repeating itself. In both Finals, La Salle won Game 2 by seven points and in Game 3, UST missed two free throws with seconds left in regulation to bail out the Archers.

“God made it happen,” said La Salle’s No. 1 patron and San Miguel Corp. chairman Eduardo (Danding) Cojuangco, referring to the victory in Game 3. “When UST opened a 15-point lead in the third quarter, I prayed so hard to give us strength. We wouldn’t have won if the Man upstairs didn’t call it.” La Salle president Br. Ricky Laguda said it was God’s gift to Cojuangco who attended to the team’s necessities like a father caring for 13 sons. Cojuangco’s support was unconditional. He refurbished his house adjacent to the La Salle campus on Agno Street to provide quarters for the team with a resident cook and a full-time prefect/academic adviser. He conceptualized an innovative educational program where players may choose to enroll in preferred courses as scholars beyond their years of playing eligibility. He tapped the services of dieticians, nutritionists and conditioning experts to prepare and sustain the Archers for the long campaign. He made sure the players were on track academically and spiritually. He organized Holy Masses to be celebrated in the dressing room before games, reminding the players that faith in God translates into believing they will excel with the Lord’s guidance.

The night before Game 3, Holy Mass was celebrated at the Agno quarters and in the dugout an hour before tip-off, healing priest Fr. Joey Faller blessed and prayed over each player. Fr. Faller led the thanksgiving prayer after the contest.

On and off the court, Sauler did his part to motivate the players. He was careful not to put pressure on the Archers and never complicated things. Sauler, a La Salle economics graduate in 1994, was a picture of composure from the start of the season to the title clincher. With assistant coaches Allan Caidic and Jun Limpot, he made the game simple to understand while preaching discipline, unselfishness and hard work. Video editor Paolo Sauler and conditioning coach Marlon Celis also played key roles in getting the team ready for every game.

Team managers Terry Capistrano, Raffy Villavicencio and Eric Ongcauco along with chief recruiter Dave Dichupa provided valuable support for the team. Capistrano said the Archers wouldn’t surrender in Game 3 because they were inspired by Cojuangco. “You see a great man like Ambassador Danding, a Philippine icon, get involved in details about the team and if you’re a player, you’ll be embarrassed not to play your guts out in every game,” he said. “Ambassador Danding brings out the best in you. He inspires not only the players but everyone else with the team. He makes you work harder and commit to achieving your goal.”

Capistrano has been with team management for 11 years accentuated by five titles in eight Finals. “The 2007 championship was special because it came right after our suspension but this year’s run was the best of them all because of the struggle,” he said. “The guys were determined to win. Imagine we were 15 down in the third quarter and four down in overtime of Game 3 but we still held on. Ambassador Cojuangco was our inspiration.” Other alumni and allies contributed to the effort including San Miguel Corp. president Ramon Ang who wanted Cojuangco’s championship dream to come true. Ang hosted a victory dinner at the Manila Diamond Hotel last night.

The future looks even brighter for La Salle as not a single player is graduating. Jeron Teng, Arnold Van Opstal, Norbert Torres, Almond Vosotros, Thomas Torres, L. A. Revilla, Oda Tampus, Luigi de la Paz, Gabby Reyes and the four rookies will be back. Lined up to join the squad are in-residence players Terrence Mustre, Abu Tratter and Julian Sargent plus the comebacking Andrada. Sauler also has some blue-chip rookies from high school he intends to enlist.

Teng, the Finals MVP, said it was a bittersweet victory coming at the expense of his older brother Jeric who played his final year with UST. “We both played to win,” said Teng. “When it was over, he told me this was the start of great things for La Salle.” Teng cried because he wanted his brother to go out with a bang but deep in his heart, couldn’t accept losing the title.

Salem said starting today, he’ll be back in the gym working on his post moves. “Coach Juno wants me to work on my inside game,” he said. “I know what to do to improve. I’ve got to have an inside-outside game.” Perkins, whose mother Jennifer Cahigas of Bolinao, Pangasinan, flew in from the US to watch the Finals, said he’ll work even harder to get stronger under the boards. In Game 3, Perkins collected 13 points and 18 rebounds.

Perkins was elevated to the UAAP Mythical Five as UE’s Charles Mammie was disqualified because of his game suspensions and NU’s Emmanuel Mbe wasn’t eligible since the selection is limited to one import with the slot going to UST’s Karim Abdul. No Archer would’ve made the Mythical Five if not for the twin disqualifications, with Sauler stressing a collective effort rather than outstanding individual performance.

Looking forward, Cojuangco will send Sauler, Caidic and Limpot to attend the San Antonio Spurs training camp on assistant coach Chip Engelland’s invitation this Saturday and the same three coaches to Sydney for a five-day specialized development program next month.

“This is a miracle team,” said Fr. Faller. “La Salle won with Divine Intervention. Nobody expected La Salle to go all the way except one man with the strongest faith – Ambassador Danding.” The improbable journey to the top is a reminder that anything is possible if you work hard and place your trust in God.