CHOOKS To Go Pilipinas sports a 2-1 won-lost record after three games in the 2017 International Basketball Federation Asia Champions Cup. In their third game in three days, Chooks To Go beat Thailand’s Mono Vampire, 115-102.
Naturalized player prospect Isaiah Austin led the hastily formed squad with 29 points, 17 boards and four swats. Austin was ably supported by Keifer Ravena with 24.
Ravena leads all Asians in the tournament in scoring at 21.3 points per game and third overall. Obviously, his training abroad and practice experience with the National Basketball Association G-League team Texas Legends is paying off dividends.
Last time I saw Ravena play this well was in his five years playing for Ateneo in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP). Far Eastern University product Carl Bryan Cruz burned the Vampires with 28 points on 8 of 11 shooting.
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THE defending champion De La Salle Green Archers suffered their first defeat last Saturday at the hands of the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons, 98-87.
Paul Desiderio tore the La Salle defense with 30 points, 18 from the three-point area. The Maroons shredded the Green Archers’ perimeter defense with 16 threes out of 34 attempts.
Aldin Ayo, hopefully, understands that you’re not going to win back-to-back titles giving up 48 points from the perimeter—98 points overall.
Super foreign student athlete Ben Mbala led De La Salle with 34 points. Mbala must make an effort to get his teammates involved because in the history of the UAAP, no one man wrecking crew has ever won a crown.