LA SALLE made quite a splash in the last Kadayawan tournament in Davao, winning two games and losing twice against PBA teams.
Although the Green Archers fell short of the championship in the four-day pocket tournament, the UAAP team wowed a lot of fans with how it played against pro ballclubs Rain or Shine, Phoenix and Converge.
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The Green Archers fell just short of beating Rain or Shine in tournament debut, 106-105, before beating both the Converge FiberXers, 120-112, and the Phoenix Fuel Masters, 104-102, to seal a rematch against ROS in the title game.
So was the Davao tournament a reflection of La Salle's strength or the weakness of PBA teams? Or has the top college teams, with their financial backing and aggressive recruitment, became as good, if not better, than pro teams?
Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao said it's both.
"Two things," said the veteran coach. "La Salle is really a formidable team; they have the size, the shooting, and the quickness as well as a competent coaching staff. I believe their [UAAP] rivals will have a hard time against them in the coming season.
"They've also experienced playing together in a championship game, and that experience will mature them," he added. "If you're a PBA team playing them and you're not ready, you'll be surprised and embarrassed."
Guiao said that was exactly what happened to the Elasto Painters the first time they played La Salle - "We were lucky to get out of that one," he said - and the other PBA teams fell into the same trap.
Converge, the coach said, beat La Salle in a practice game prior to the tournament and was most likely overconfident going to the Davao match.
The point, Guiao said, was that "La Salle was ready to face PBA teams while the PBA teams weren't ready to play a strong college team - or at least they were not expecting a college team to play at that level."
Rain or Shine's convincing 138-116 win over La Salle in Sunday's title game was the result of the Elasto Painters knowing what to expect from the Green Archers, the coach said.
"The element of surprise was no longer there," Guiao said.
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Still, that doesn't take anything away from how good a team of college players already is, marvelling at the talent at the Green Archers' disposal especially its do-it-all frontline star Kevin Quiambao.
"He's playing at a different level. Hinog na hinog na," he said. "His game is ready for the pro ranks."
Guiao said the talent in the La Salle lineup should benefit the PBA in the long run, except that most of the best players in that team will either head overseas or end up with the strong PBA ballclubs owing to a flawed draft system.
"Sa huli, sila lang ang makikinabang," he said smiling.
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