CHICAGO - In a spectacular NCAA Season 101 debut for San Beda last October 5, Janti Miller exceeded the hype that he is a strong candidate for both Rookie of the Year and MVP honors.
Fluid as oxygen, and with nifty handles that allows him to roam the floor and create his own shot, the Fil-Am from Fairfield, California casually dropped 22 points on 8-of-14 shooting as the Red Lions preyed on rival Letran, 68-58 at the FilOil Centre.
Since that coming-out party, Janti hasn't slowed down, prompting an opposing NCAA team coach to declare that "Miller is the best player in the league, by far."
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But in San Beda's thrilling triple-overtime loss to powerhouse Perpetual on Wednesday, Superman Janti may have met his kryptonite: Poor shooting percentage.
Although he led all scorers with 28 points, his accuracy was off, hitting only 2-of-15 from 3 and 11-of-30 from the field overall.
"He's a volume shooter," San Beda team manager Jude Roque said of his recruit who took almost one-third of Beda's 96 field goals attempted. "He just needs to improve his shooting percentage," added Roque.
BEHIND THE 8-BALL.
Through eight games, Miller has piled up a total of 158 points, 47 rebounds, five assists, five steals, three blocks with 20 turnovers.
And while his point-production is gaudy, his assists-to-turnovers ratio is dragging him down in the race for individual awards that are given through a league formula that is based solely on statistics..
His defense isn't helping, either.
"His on-ball defense is okay. It's his off-ball D that needs improvement," Roque said.
Through Wednesday night, Miller was ranked just seventh among the statistical leaders.
If the awards were handed down today, Allen Liwag of Benilde will repeat as MVP with 82 points, 45 rebounds, 11 assists, four blocks, two steals and just eight turnovers in five games played.,
BACK-TO-BACK MVP?
A prolific scorer in his own right, Liwag is also the reigning Defensive Player of the Year. His well-established reputation as a two-way player makes him exceedingly difficult to supplant as the NCAA's top dog.
Jonathan Manalili of Letran, on the other hand, will run away with the ROY after collecting 95 points, 45 rebounds, 77 assists and 13 steals with 35 turnovers in eight games played.
There are so many things to like about Miller. He has good height, athleticism and a big body that can finish with contact. He is the second coming of Bobby Ray Parks and is, arguably, a stronger, better shooting guard-small forward than Dwight Ramos.
But there are issues, I am told, with Miller's focus, discipline and coachability.
All things considered, Janti can still pull off the ROY-MVP double whammy, but he needs to shoot better, spread the butter more often, grab a chunk of rebounds and heighten ball protection.
In other words, as the awards criteria demands, the 21-year old offensive juggernaut must morph into an all-around threat and not just a one-dimensional player who can score with the best of them.
Will Miller time rise to the challenge?
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