UAAP: Ramos rediscovers sharp form, Acibar is a monster

Acibar is a monster;

Ramos rediscovers sharp form

By Josiah Israel Albelda

21 August 2010

Two long-armed, high-flying and reed-thin post players grabbed the spotlight at the UAAP wars today. 


After posting career-highs of 18 points, 20 rebounds and three blocks in a loss to league-leading Far Eastern last week, Ken Acibar showed how he can dominate anew, scoring 15 markers, hauling down 16 rebounds (seven of which are offensive) and blocking four shots as the University of the East sent Adamson crashing back to earth with a 71 - 63 upset earlier today at the Philsports Arena.


The six-foot-five Acibar drained six of his 14 shots and was most efficient player on the court (21). The only knock I see on this guy's game is that he takes too many perimeter shots. Acibar is lanky and quick on his feet, thus, he might have a higher shot percentage (a respectable 43.1% in the first round) if he decides to drive hard to the hoop.


Likewise, he commits a lot of turnovers. After averaging 1.7 turnovers in the first round (second only to Paul Lee's team and league-worst 3.7), Acibar had six turnovers in this match.


Smart Gilas national developmental team standout Aldrech Ramos, meanwhile, displayed the deadly form that earned him raves last season, where he placed second in the Most Valuable Player.


Playing under the radar for the first eight games, Ramos exploded in their 76 - 67 victory over the toothless Santo Tomas. The six-foot-seven center had 21 points, 15 rebounds (seven of which are offensive), six assists and two blocked shots. 


With this awesome performance (he also shot 10-of-14 from two-point range), Ramos built a strong case for his own MVP run. At the end of the first round, he was actually third in the race, having a total 58.43 SPs.


Teammate Ryan Roose Garcia led with 64.71 SPs while King Warrior Paul Lee had 60.29 SPs.


What's good for the Tamaraws is that Ramos is just heating up, still trying to fit in Coach Glenn Capacio's new system after being with Smart Gilas for seven months.


"Nahirapan pa talaga ako mag adjust sa bagong system namin," he said. 


And with this comes a warning that the rest of the UAAP land should be careful because a loose Tamaraw is on the prowl. ###