By REYNALD MAGALLON
Defending champion Letran and runner-up San Beda University are the consensus favorites in the return of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) basketball action on March 26.
During the Media Launch held at the GMA Network Studio 6 Saturday, the NCAA coaches are convinced the two squads remain as the teams to beat although they also admitted that the upcoming tournament could see an even playing field considering that all the teams are coming off a two-year lull due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Coaches Cholo Martin of Arellano University, Oliver Bunyi of Emilio Aguinaldo College and Louie Gonzales of Jose Rizal University said Letran will be hard to beat especially with its prized additions in Rhenz Abando and Brent Paraiso.
San Beda head coach Boyet Fernandez even noted that Letran is already a lock in the playoffs and that the rest of the NCAA teams are only battling for the next spots in the standings.
Coach Charles Tiu of the host school College of Saint Benilde added that the championship experience of the two teams easily makes them the top choice although he stressed that the rest of other schools can pull off surprises in the eliminations.
“All the teams I guess you have to beat them, but obviously Letran is the defending champion and their team is pretty solid. San Beda, you cannot just take them out and I think in the last decade dalawa o tatlo lang ata sila ‘di nagchampion,” said Tiu.
Tiu’s Blazers will be the first team to test Letran’s mettle in the season opener on March 26 at 3:30 p.m. followed by a clash between San Beda and Lyceum of the Philippines University at 7:05 p.m.
Pirates head coach Gilbert Malabanan, meanwhile, said the format of the eliminations will play a huge factor in the tournament since the NCAA committee is adapting a single round-robin tournament with the top 6 teams advancing to the postseason.
The top two teams will get an outright spot to the semifinals while the third to sixth teams will battle for the last two spots through a play-in.
“’Yung format natin ngayon is very important, every game is very important so every team is team to beat kailangan mo talunin kailangan mo manalo ng how many games na kailangan para makapasok ka kaya every game is crucial,” said Malabanan.
