The two best teams of the UAAP Season 87 Men’s Basketball Tournament—the La Salle Green Archers and UP Fighting Maroons—will fittingly be duking it out for all the marbles. Their epic clash for the tile is a rematch of Season 86’s Finals, which La Salle won, 2-1, for its first title since 2016.
The Green Archers will be looking to repeat last year’s results, while the Fighting Maroons will look to avoid another bridesmaid finish in the hands of a team that is fast becoming a nemesis. And with the Finals just days away, it is time to break down this potentially epic series by going behind the numbers:
5
This is the number of wins La Salle has over UP dating back to Season 86. Two of these were the Green Archers’ back-to-back triumphs to win last season’s championship series, 2-1, after losing Game 1. This season, La Salle beat UP twice in the eliminations—68-56 in the first round, and 77-66 in the second round.
Five is also the number of Finals appearances the Fighting Maroons now have—including this year’s rematch with La Salle—over the past six UAAP seasons. In this stretch, UP also made the Finals of Seasons 81, 84, 85, and 86, and just missed out on Season 82 (Season 83 was cancelled due to COVID-19). UP, however, has only the Season 84 championship to show for.
74.2 and 73.3
These are the points per game of La Salle and UP, respectively, for Season 87. They are first and second in points scored this season, which indicates the Finals could likely be a showcase of firepower—especially with the Fighting Maroons and Green Archers topping the league in field goal percentage as well at 41.1% and 40.2%, respectively.
63.9
Then again, defense wins championships. If that’s the case, the 63.9 points allowed by La Salle—third in the UAAP—bodes well for the Taft-based team as it shows it can put the clamps on any team. The Green Archers already did it against UP, holding the Katipunan-based squad to 61.0 in their two games in the elims.
17.9
The Fighting Maroons are not slouched on defense either. Sure, they’re just fifth in points allowed at 65.4, but they’re no.1 in turnovers forced at 17.9 a game. More importantly, they convert these turnovers to points, scoring a league-best 15.7 points off turnovers.
17
That’s the number of Kevin Quiambao, La Salle’s undisputed main man who figures to be UP’s biggest headache this championship series. The MVP-in-waiting, Quiambao averaged 16.6 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 4.1 assists in the eliminations and will surely turn up the heat in the Finals.
18
That’s the number of Harold Alarcon, who might very well be the man to shoot down the Green Archers. Alarcon is coming in hot for the Finals as well, averaging 24.5 points in UP’s last two games on 50% shooting. A certified bucket-getter, no. 18 will need to be at his best if the Fighting Maroons are to win.
UAAP Men’s Basketball Finals Schedule
The Finals of the UAAP Season 87 Men’s Basketball Tournament will start on Sunday, December 8, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. Game 2 will be on December 11 at the Mall of Asia Arena. Game 3, if necessary, will be on December 15, also at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
