By JEROME LAGUNZAD
Ateneo continues to stand tall in the UAAP Season 80 juniors basketball tournament and towering center Kai Sotto is undoubtedly the main reason why.
The 7-foot-2 Sotto came through with yet another dominant performance over the weekend as the Blue Eaglets routed archrival La Salle-Zobel Junior Archers, 87-63, to complete a seven-game sweep of the first round of eliminations.
The son of former pro league stalwart Ervin frolicked down low with game-highs of 16 rebounds and four blocks on top of 11 points.
Despite playing for just 23 minutes per match, Sotto is proving to be efficient underscored by his solid numbers of 12.9 points anchored on 52.5 percent shooting aside from 12.7 rebounds and league-best 4.9 swats – even greater than the average blocks output of seven other teams.
“His presence makes it easy for everyone to do their jobs on both ends,” said Ateneo coach Joe Silva of his prized sophomore center.
“Defensively, he makes it difficult for other teams to penetrate inside the shaded area. Offensively, his presence opens up a lot of opportunities for his teammates.”
While Ateneo appears on track to reclaim the coveted title it last hoisted back in 2015, National University looks formidable as ever with a near flawless 6-1 mark, its latest victory coming at the expense of University of the Philippines-Integrated School, 103-79.
Running third is University of Santo Tomas with a 5-2 mark, thanks to the sustained brilliance of ace forward John Cansino, the league’s most potent scorer with 27.6 points per game.
At fourth spot with a 4-3 record is defending champion Far Eastern University-Diliman, which has won its last two matches, including a 96-91 overtime victory over Adamson last Saturday, ahead of the Christmas break.
The Baby Falcons dropped out of the “Magic Four” with a 3-4 card, followed by the Junior Archers (2-5) and Junior Maroons (1-6). Meanwhile, University of the East’s Juniors Warriors are still searching for a breakthrough win.
Despite the Blue Eaglets’ feat, Silva is convinced they still have plenty of room for improvement.
“Sweeping the first round means nothing to us,” he stressed. “We’re just taking it one game at a time. We’re trying to have that focus each and every game. Our main concern is how to lessen our turnovers and the fastbreak points that we’re allowing.”
