FEU PG Factory Produces Yet Another Gem
Johnny Abarrientos. Denok Miranda. Mark Barocca. RR Garcia. Terrence Romeo.
Imagine playing for a top-notch university with those former players all manning the point in the past. Imagine that you were groomed to be the next torchbearer and expected to lead the team to its next championship.
That’s the burden that Mike Tolomia carries on both of his shoulders this season. So far though, he’s lived up to the billing.
This season, Mike Tolomia is shooting 42/96 (43.75%) from the field. To break that number down, his shot selection, here is his current shot temperature in 7 games.
Depending on whom you asked, FEU was ranked as either #1 or #2 entering this season (for those keeping count, our staff at the Bandwagon Wire had them ranked #2 just behind DLSU). The team hasn’t disappointed, as it’s currently sporting a 4-2 record, including impressive victories against De La Salle and National University.
Truth be told, Mike’s emergence this season isn’t too surprising. He was already logging major minutes the past two seasons alongside former MVP teammates RR Garcia and Terrence Romeo, averaging 24.7 minutes per game last season.
The problem with being the lead guard for the FEU Tamaraws though is that you’ll always be compared to former guards who set the standard for the Morayta-based program.
With that said, here’s a look at Romeo’s, last season’s Most Valuable Player, statistics last year, and Tolomia’s this season:
| MPG | PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | TO | FG% | 3FG% | |
| Romeo | 31.1 | 21.4 | 6.1 | 3.8 | 1.5 | 3.1 | 37.5% | 27.8% |
| Tolomia | 26.57 | 16.29 | 3.86 | 3.71 | .29 | 3.86 | 43.75% | 34.21% |
A glance at the numbers will show that Romeo definitely has the edge, statistics-wise and it isn’t even really that close. Terrence has Mike beat in all the major categories except shooting percentages.
Take note though that Romeo’s numbers are a little inflated due to him playing 5 more minutes per game than Tolomia.
To make the comparison a little bit fairer, let’s see how they match-up using per 30-minute averages as well as some other reader-friendly advanced stats*:
| PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | TOS | USG% | |
| Romeo | 21.4 | 6.1 | 3.8 | 1.5 | 3.1 | 37.1% |
| Tolomia | 18.8 | 4.4 | 4.3 | .3 | 4.4 | 33.2% |
Even when accounting for minutes played, Romeo’s MVP numbers are still a level above Tolomia’s.
However, we should point out that Romeo did hog have a higher usage rate, which does help give him more opportunities to boost his stat line. Secondly, we should also note that the Tamaraws also have an MVP contender on their team, Mac Belo, who’s currently on an insane run on his own. Given that Mike is reportedly a good teammate, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind sharing the spotlight as long as the team keeps winning.
Truth be told, Tolomia’s right on track in his progress and don’t be surprised if he emerges as the outright favorite to win an MVP in his fifth and last season next year. For now, we’ll have to be satisfied with the show that’s putting on right now.
*USG% is taken from stats.humblebola.com (Humble Bola)
