UAAP S74: FEU vs DLSU

History Lesson:
The first game of the 74th UAAP season went down to the wire, though La Salle led early on a 7-1 opening run. FEU was thinking long-term though, and erected a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter, off a triple by RR Garcia, 55-45. The Archers got close though, cutting the lead down to four, 66-62 on a Revilla layup, but Garcia responded by scoring on an inbounds play, and then a Romeo swipe sent him to the line for game-clinching free throws, as the Tams got victory number one, 74-65. (Recap here)
What's at Stake:

• FEU 8-5
• La Salle crumbled once again, losing to NU to drop to 5-8, and out of Final Four contention (not that it would have mattered with UST winning in the second game). All that's left is to play for pride, and hope that they can avert a 1-6 second round record. 

FEU Stat to Watch : FEU's been so banged up that it's possible they'll get just limited minutes again from Russel Escoto and the come-backing JR Cawaling. If that's the case, then it becomes imperative that their power forwards, Mark Bringas and Carl Bryan Cruz, outplay the DLSU bigs again. In their first encounter, the two combined for 14 points, nine rebounds and six assists, which are great numbers considering the entire La Salle frontcourt managed just 17 points, 22 rebounds and two dimes, with Torres and Van Opstal fouling out in the process.
FEU Player to Watch : Roger Pogoy proved that he could play key minutes as this team's small forward, scoring 14 on 6 of 9 shooting, while adding six rebounds and two steals. Giving Pogoy minutes means the Tams won't have to rely so much on three guard line-ups, and his hustle will give him the edge when fighting for loose balls. He's a good match for Luigi Dela Paz and Jarelan Tampus.

DLSU Stat to Watch : La Salle's offense has completely gone into the tank in the second round, save for their come from behind win versus UP. Taking that game out of the mix, the Archers are just averaging just 57.8 points in their five games on 34.62 percent shooting. A large part of this stems from the lack of confidence of all but a handful of players. Save for Almond Vosotoros (who was promptly guarded by Bobby Ray Parks in the second half), no other green shirt scored more than four points versus NU. If FEU's defense holds, this could be a long game for DLSU.
DLSU Player to Watch : Norbert Torres and Arnold Van Opstal both had miserable UAAP debuts, barely making an impact and fouling out. With FEU's frontline weakened, fielding both at the same time again may cause problems for the Tams, since Aldrech Ramos can't be everywhere at once.

Prediction: FEU Tamaraws