TITING Manalili has been given the clearance to return to the floor for Letran’s penultimate game in the NCAA Season 102 men’s basketball tournament as the Knights battle the EAC Generals on Thursday at the Filoil Center in San Juan.
Manalili has been sidelined with a knee sprain since October 8 after landing badly in their win over the Lyceum Pirates and was scheduled to miss at least three weeks as he heals from the injury.
A source confirmed to Spin.ph that the Cebuano floor general has been given the green light to play, albeit with minutes restriction.
Asked for confirmation, coach Allen Ricardo added that it’s likely that Manalili will play, but remains non-committal.
“Most likely, 50/50,” Ricardo told spin.ph in a short text message.
READ: Letran's Manalili on pace for NCAA Season 102 MVP. But...
Big time implications for Manalili individually
Manalili actually doesn’t need to rush his return as the Knights have already wrapped up the top seed in Group B with an 8-3 record with two games to spare in the group stages.
While it took time for the Knights to get going without their star guard, they’ve actually learned to win without him — going 4-1 after their Lyceum game, and 4-2 in total in all the games with Manalili sidelined.
Individually, though, it has huge implications.
Manalili is smack-dab in the middle of a tight MVP race as he leads Jose Rizal University’s Lawrence Mangubat, San Beda's Aldous Torculas, Mapua's Yam Concepcion and Arellano’s T-Mc Ongotan for the top individual plum in the NCAA.
For the season, Manalili is averaging 13.8 points, and league-best averages of 10.2 assists and four steals per game to top the NCAA MVP race.
The caveat is that Manalili can’t afford to miss a game anymore as he’ll fall below the 50 percent threshold of the NCAA to be eligible for an MVP award. He’s already missed six games and missing one more would deem him ineligible.
On the flipside, Letran will be playing a team that has something to play for, with the EAC Generals still looking for a twice-to-beat advantage in the group.
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