NCAA S87: AU vs UPHSD

History Lesson:
Coming close doesn't count for a lot in the NCAA, but the Altas did find themselves with a winnable game. Gerald Lapuz halved his charities to put the Chiefs up 71-62, but star player Jett Vidal countered with a triple, reducing the deficit to six, 1:34 left. Concentrated defense by the Altas drew two turnovers from the sloppy Chiefs, but the host school could not convert on the other end, with Vidal failing to repeat his make from downtown on two tries. They got close enough to make it 71-65, but by then, the clock had ran out, giving Arellano back to back wins for the first time in the season. (Recap here)


What's at Stake:

• There's nothing at stake but pride in this game, as the 6-11 Chiefs take on the 4-13 Altas.

AU Stat to Watch : We know that the Chiefs love to zone, and when they do, they're vulnerable to three-point shots if they don't rotate quickly enough to the open guy. They didn't do that in the first half of the season, giving up 34.98 percent shooting from downtown and 6.87 makes. Well they seem to have righted that ship in the latter part of the year as that percentage has dropped down to 26.28 percent and four treys. Given that the Altas take and make the most triples in the league, that defense will be tested in their final game of the season.
AU Player to Watch : Andrian Celada's numbers are down across the board from his Mythical Five selection season a year ago, but the graduating senior will likely look to leave with a bang before heading off to the PBA-DL, and perhaps, the PBA after that.

UPHSD Stat to Watch : The Altas bucked a 33 percent shooting clip to beat Letran from the line, going 21 of 26 from the stripe. That's 80.77 percent, their best for the entire season, believe it or not. Can they repeat that feat?
UPHSD Player to Watch : Jett Vidal out-dueled Kevin Alas in their upset of Letran, with Vidal scoring 18 on 5 of 13 field goal shooting, and more importantly, 7 of 8 from the line. If he can match the production of Celada, then the Altas will likely be in good shape.


Prediction: AU Chiefs