NCAA S87: EAC vs LPU

History Lesson:

Not a lot of history here. EAC is a probationary member of the NCAA, which is what the guest team LPU wants to become next season I suppose.

EAC Storyline : After getting their season off to a good start by upsetting the Arellano Chiefs, the EAC Generals crashed back down to Earth, following a stunning blowout by the JRU Heavy Bombers. JRU's press worked perfectly, disrupting the EAC offense, and reducing most of the plays to one on one affairs, as exemplified by the wild play by rookie Joshua Torralba. With quite a bit of talent on this squad, head coach Gerry Esplana will have to find a way to get these guys to play as a team, while balancing the minutes between his established guys and all the talented newcomers.

Stat to Watch : When the Generals beat the Chiefs, EAC got better ball movement with 22 assists, compared to just 8 in their game against JRU. In their first outing, Milan Vargas and Franz Chiong dished out 9 assists, but the pair had just 1 as the press completely took the Generals out of rhythm. If they're going to beat the Pirates, EAC will have to force their tempo on to them and make sure there's ball movement, especially if Lyceum goes to zone again.

Player to Watch : While it's been rookies like Jolas Paguia and Joshua Torralba getting all the headlines, quietly making a mark has been Jan Jamon, who's averaging 15 points on 55% shooting in 20.5 minutes of play. His outside shooting will definitely come into play versus Lyceum, but his veteran presence should also serve to stabilize his team, especially if they need to win from behind again like their first game versus Arellano.

Lyceum Storyline : The Pirates jumped out to a nice 2-0 lead, before crashing back to reality when the San Beda Red Lions demolished them with outside shooting. In Lyceum's defense, they put up a much better fight than a lot of people expected, especially with point guard Shane Ko sidelined due to a wrist injury. Playing against EAC will be a test to see if they can inch up a tier to become a fringe playoff team, or if they're simply the best of the lower feeders.

Stat to Watch : Lyceum opted to use the zone almost the entire game in an effort to stop the San Beda big men from dominating and the move worked, somewhat, but it allowed guys like Garvo Lanete and Melo Lim to go off and rain triples down on their heads. Against an EAC team with a clutch of players willing and able to launch up a few treys, Lyceum will need to defend the perimeter better.

Player to Watch : Dexter Zamora played astounding minutes in absence of Ko, leading Lyceum with 21 big points, including 4 triples. If Ko is still out, Zamora will get big minutes again, and they'll need him to once again be on fire, to prevent opponents from simply double-teaming Chris Cayabyab.

Prediction: EAC Generals