ONE GAME, MANY ANSWERS
After the first 40 minutes of UAAP basketball, one thing every La Salle fan can already see is that the biggest green asset for Season 89 may be mad depth and the championship experience tucked inside it.
The sample size is still microscopic, but the bench mob came in against National University and played like starters who had been doing this for five years. Joaquin Tovera erupted for 22 points, Doy Dungo added 12 and Mo Kulang swallowed 11 rebounds, seven of them offensive, as La Salle survived NU, 89-87.
The victory was hardly clean and for long stretches, the ghost of losing Motor Mike was still haunting the Green Archers.
NU went straight and pounded at the pain point – La Salle’s interior. PJ Palacello established himself on the low block, Mo Diassana feasted on emergency feeds, and La Salle’s new frontline was chasing straws to keep the Bulldogs from repeatedly getting into the paint. NU eventually dominated the boards 54-36, grabbed 22 offensive rebounds, and turned those extra possessions into a 19-8 advantage in second-chance points.
The expected problem was still there.
The difference was that Coach Topex Robinson had more answers.
THE BENCH CHANGED THE GAME
Tovera certainly didn’t wait for his moment, and zero jitters for a rook.
The Gilas U-18 MVP torched an ambushed NU defense for 11 points in roughly two minutes during the first quarter, helping La Salle turn a shaky start into a 31-24 lead. He attacked gaps before NU could load its help, changed direction when the first defender cut him off and forced the Bulldogs to decide whether to stop his penetration or stay attached to the shooters.
That is exactly what La Salle needs when defenses inevitably start mobbing Jacob Cortez and Luis Pablo: another player capable of creating the first advantage.
Tovera finished with 22 points in just 13 minutes, but the more interesting part was how quickly he made NU react. Against bigger and more physical UAAP defenses, the next step will be whether he can remain effective after the second defender arrives—pull up when the lane closes, keep his balance through contact, or find the next open Archer ready to launch.
For Opening Day, though, the message was clear.
Tovera’s immediate rise in stock is now another problem for the opposition.
Dungo provided a different kind of answer. After the young guns supplied the burst, the veteran guards settled the game down and played through NU’s pressure. When the Bulldogs diced the lead down to 85-84 with 2:40 left, Dungo found daylight around the quarter court and buried the open three that pushed La Salle ahead 88-84 with 50 seconds remaining.
Nothing fancy. Just a veteran with a perfect read with the right nerves.
He finished +15 in only 15 minutes.
KULANG AND THE PROBLEM LA SALLE STILL HAS
Kulang’s contribution was simpler.
He went after the glass.
Eleven rebounds in 15 minutes, including seven offensive boards, gave La Salle extra possessions at a time when NU was bullying them inside. It was an impressive relief job for Luis Pablo and a promising glimpse of what Kulang can provide.
But it did not erase the problem.
NU’s 22 offensive rebounds were the loudest warning of the afternoon, and they are probably the number Topex will spend more time studying than the final score.
But Kulang’s UAAP debut remained impressive. Kulang does not have to become Phillips. He needs to give La Salle enough rebounding and interior resistance that the perimeter defense can start taking those chances again.
The no-fly zone is simply under reconstruction.
LA SALLE DID NU TO NU
The other encouraging part was that La Salle refused to let NU dictate the personality of the game.
The Bulldogs usually thrive on physical defense, pressure, and forcing opponents into mistakes. This time, La Salle returned the favor, forcing 18 turnovers while committing only 10. Those extra possessions became a 15-6 advantage in points off turnovers and a 20-11 edge in fastbreak points.
The veterans knew what was coming, but the deeper rotation made it harder for NU to simply load everything toward Cortez.
If NU squeezed Cortez, Tovera could attack.
If the defense chased Tovera, Dungo could punish the rotation.
If the perimeter collapsed toward Pablo, another pass was available.
And if the shot missed, Kulang was hunting the rebound.
It was DEPTH THAT MATTERED – having more capable pieces to create different problems. An offense that refused redundancy and leaned on creativity and fluidity.
Even with Mason Amos and Earl Abadam combining to shoot just 2-for-10, La Salle still found enough offense to score 89.
One game doesn’t make any of that permanent. NU exposed the rebounding weakness, nearly erased a 14-point halftime lead, and had a potential game-winner sitting in Palacello’s hands at the corner.
But Opening Day gave La Salle something the offseason couldn’t.
Evidence.
The Green Archers are not replacing Phillips, Baclaan and Gollena one-for-one. They are redistributing what those players used to give the team.
Tovera brings another point of attack. Dungo brings veteran control. Kulang brings the possibility of restoring some of the interior margin. The returning veterans give it all a stable foundation.
There will be tougher tests, and there are still obvious holes to patch.
But after one game, the most interesting thing about La Salle isn’t that the bench is deep.
It’s that the bench can change the question the defense has to answer.
ANIMO LA SALLE!
