Grown-up Mbala makes La Salle UAAP favorite

MANILA, Philippines – It’s tough to pinpoint when the Ateneo Blue Eagles may have realized they had no shot to beat the De La Salle Green Archers during their FilOil game this past Sunday. 

Was it in the first half, when the Cameroonian student-athlete on the opposite end of the court looked like a man on a mission? Was it in the third quarter, when he spun with ease in the low block and threw down a dunk that had the entire crowd at the San Juan Arena up on its feet, save for some folks in blue?

Was it later on, when he raced all the way to the other end of the court, blocking a layup out of bounds in what was a superior display of athleticism? Or was it in the fourth quarter, when after a teammate hit a 3-pointer, he celebrated by shimmying on the bench?

This much was clear: Ben Mbala was a man among boys against Ateneo, destroying them with his 28 points (8/16 FG, 12/13 FT), 16 rebounds, and 3 blocks in a 98-66 win for the Green Archers which, believe it or not, seemed even more lopsided than the final score suggests. 

There were “oohs” and “ahhhs,” shrieks of joy, shaking heads of disbelief, and a picture of what’s to come in September. Here comes Mbala, with athleticism that outclasses anyone the UAAP will have to offer, with the abilities of a recruit that will make him arguably the greatest import the college basketball scene has seen in recent memory.

“We just want to improve. It’s not the UAAP yet, but we know we still have a lot to work on, and I cannot just look at the past games and what I did in the past games, but find a way to always improve – defense and offense,” he said after the game.

It’s weird, listening to him speak this way. That’s not to say he’s arrogant, especially when he usually refers to himself as just “The Kid from Cameroon,” but the maturity in over a year’s time is surprising from the 21-year-old. 

Truth be told, the Green Archers’ 2015 season came to an end when Mbala hopped on that plane to General Santos in December 2014 and broke UAAP protocol for players serving residency by playing in an outside league. 

La Salle needed Mbala, desperately requiring his presence in the paint with Arnold Van Opstal and Norbert Torres leaving, and Jason Perkins not looking like himself. But rules are rules, so DLSU slumbered to a 6-8 season, missing the Final Four in a year they expected to contend for a championship once again. 

“It made me grow up,” a serious Mbala told Rappler outside La Salle’s locker room after the win on Sunday, reflecting on lost time.

“Just the pain of seeing the team struggling and needing me. I wasn’t there, so it really made me grow up and now I have time to think about what I did, work on my game, I’m just really glad I’m here to help my team and be able to just play this way.”

During the FilOil finals in 2015 when San Beda trashed La Salle, Mbala stood near the entrance to the playing court, a few steps away from the DLSU bench. As the Red Lions kept adding to the deficit on the scoreboard, he shook his head repeatedly, even closing his eyes at some points. The torture was evident, and the scene repeated itself continuously in the UAAP season during the months to follow.

“I’m still young and people make mistakes,” he reflected.

It wasn’t just the choice to put his team’s UAAP season in jeopardy. Mbala had other episodes of immaturity as well. There were times on the court when he hogged the ball, going one-on-3 in the paint as open teammates waved for the ball. Or who could ever forget when he got into a Twitter war with San Beda import Ola Adeogun, going as far as mocking the Red Lion as “pink cat” on social media?

“You just got beaten by the PINK CAT, stay humble kid, you got a long way to go, you good,” Adeogun responded later on, and San Beda beat La Salle in the 2014 PCCL Finals, with the Nigerian getting the last laugh on the court and away from it.

“All these things gave me time to think, sit out, and do what the team really wants me to do. It’s not about me, but it’s about the team,” Mbala said.

“Things like that really helped me grow up.”

His new head coach has seen the dedication and, most notably, the selflessness that’s now evident. Aldin Ayo has tried to train the Green Archers to think “we” over “me,” and his polarizing big man has given in to the cause.

“He’s very hardworking, and he prioritizes first the team before thinking of himself, and well, [he’s relentless],” said Ayo.

The UAAP is months away, and as the former Letran head coach prefers to point out, there are other talented coaches in the league that will make it tough for the Green Archers to reclaim lost glory.

But take a look at DLSU’s roster, and ask this: Is there any team that can stop their march to the top? Is going undefeated the entire season, which seems laughable at first, actually impossible? Because from what they showed on Sunday, and what they’ve displayed this entire preseason tournament (5-0), it sure looks plausible.

“We still have lapses on defense, and also with offense. There are a lot of things to work on,” warned the new head coach.

Sure, but Mbala looks set to be the best player in the league. Jeron Teng, who had 24 points against Ateneo, is a former Finals MVP and consistent league MVP candidate. The entire crew is returning, from Thomas Torres to Andrei Caracut to Prince Rivero and, just recently official, Perkins. Aljun Melecio, the UAAP juniors MVP, and Ricci Rivero, the supposed-to-be NCAA juniors MVP, are in the line-up.

Now take a look at the competition: Ateneo seems to have lost its chance at championship contention when Arvin Tolentino, CJ Perez, and 5 others became academically ineligible to play. Franz and Derrick Pumaren, two incredible coaches, make Adamson and UE formidable, but they lack the tools to win a title just yet.

UST just hired a new coach in Boy Sablan, 4 months before the season starts, and lost its best player Louie Vigil due to a rule change. UP, with a new head coach in Bo Perasol, is still building its way to Final Four contention. FEU has arguably the best coach in college ball in Nash Racela, but losing Mac Belo, Roger Pogoy, and Mike Tolomia, among others, is no easy obstacle to overcome.

The team with the best shot to beat DLSU is NU, since outstanding defensive player Alfred Aroga can possibly contain Mbala. But losing Gelo Alolino leaves a gap in the point guard and closer positions, and it’s tough to say if another Bulldog is ready to take the mantle.

“I just want them to be tough,” said Ayo of his team, which he believes is still far from a finished product, “and I always tell them that all your actions should be within the context of basketball. We’re going to play physical. We’re going to be tough, but not rough.”

Is La Salle unbeatable when playing at the top of its game? “I think so, yeah,” Mbala responded. “If we keep playing defense this way, I think we have our chances to get back the championship.”

Here comes Mbala, with the first of his 3 years of eligibility about to kick off. His Green Archers debut on the big stage had been postponed because of his own unwise actions, and for that, he’s done his time, getting better on the court while improving an even more critical area: his mentality. – Rappler.com