Last Stand
2013 Roster:
Rodolfo Alejandro, Joshua Angelo Alolino, Mark Joel de Guzman, Nico Paolo Javelona, Joeffrey Javillonar, Glenn Khobuntin, Cederick Labing-isa, Emmanuel Mbe, Kyle Drexler Neypes, Bobby Ray Parks, Tristan Perez, William Maurice Porter, Robin Rono, Jeth Troy Rosario and Lee Dennice Villamor
Season 76 Standing:
4th place (10-4, lost to UST Growling Tigers)
Pomp and Circumstance:
Bobby Ray Parks Jr., Emmanuel MBE!, Robin Rono, Mark de Guzman, Cederick Labing-isa, William Porter and Dennice Villamor
Stats Don’t Lie:
Lost 45.63 PPG, 7.1 APG, 27.95 RPG, 3.05 SPG and 2.06 BPG
Returns and Additions:
Alfred Aroga, Raphael Atangan, Rev Dipotado, Ralph Tansingco, Mohamad Salim, Reden Celda, JP Caulian and Dave Yu
Projected 2014 Depth Chart:
| C | Alfred Aroga (1st) | Henry Betayene (2nd) | Tristan Perez (3rd) | |
| F | Troy Rosario (5th) | Kyle Neypes (4th) | Ralph Tansingco(1st) | |
| F | Glenn Khobuntin (5th) | Raphael Atangan (1st) | Mohamad Salim (1st) | JP Caulian (1st) |
| G | Rodolfo Alejandro (2nd) | Paolo Javelona (4th) | Reden Celda (1st) | Dave Yu (1st) |
| G | Angelo Alolino (4th) | Rev Dipotado (1st) |
Pre-Season Standing:
Premiere Cup
Quarterfinals, Eliminated by the San Beda Red Lions (5-1 Group C, 5th seed)
The Wire Says:
The Ballad of Bobby Ray
It’s sad to see Bobby Ray Parks Jr. graduate without ever winning the UAAP Championship. Bobby Ray will go down as one of the best Philippine basketball players ever not to win the coveted crown, along with the likes of James Yap.
(We’ll get into detail with this soon.)
Last Stand
Now, this might be Coach Eric Altamirano’s last stand with the Bulldogs. Here at the Wire, we love Coach E. Who could forget Purefood’s upset win over Gordon’s Gin 17 years ago?
Throughout his tenure as head coach for the Bulldogs, Coach E was, for us, the best coach to translate strategy to his players in-game. His leadership as a coach is one of the best in the collegiate ranks. The biggest problem was that the pieces wouldn’t fit. The Bulldogs were one solid point guard away from winning it all. Ball-handling duties were passed on to Bobby Ray, which made it harder for him to create his own shot during that run. But, as always, all the blame fell on Coach E even though the circumstance given to him was the main problem.
This may be his make-or-break year. We think the Bulldogs need to reach the Final Four THIS year. Is it possible with almost all the universities reloading this year? Our editor-in-chief thinks so!
Guys Who Need to Fill the Gaps
We can’t wait to see Troy Rosario step-up for the Bulldogs. Same goes to Jelo Alolino and Glenn Khobuntin. During the Parks-MBE! era, the main problem of the Bulldogs was inconsistency. The last two years of that era always started with a strong showing from the supporting cast. This will be (insert name here) break-season. Finally, the third guy they need. All this was based on how they dominated the summer leagues. Then, the 2nd round of the season comes along, and all the guys just fade away into oblivion. Now the spotlight is on those three guys. If Alolino becomes steady at point, Khobuntin becomes consistent with his mid-range J, and Rosario becomes a stable source of energy, the Bulldogs could be dark-horse contenders for this season.
But the one guy the Wire is curious about is Dave Yu. Sure, he is young and raw right now and his body has yet to develop but the guy is eerily in the mold of Larry Fonacier. The ceiling is high for the kid.
Parting Shot
But one other thing most people forget is the loss of MBE!. National University always had two MVP candidates year-in and year-out during the Parks-MBE! era. The Bulldogs have Betayene and Aroga to man the paint this season.
If you haven’t seen Aroga yet, prepare to be amazed.
THIS.
AND THIS!!!
BONUS ROUND:
Tricia Robredo
Predicted Ranking
Editor-in-Chief: 4th
TieBreaker Times Staff: 6th
