“Winning the MVP has not yet crossed my mind. My goal is to win the championship for our school, one game at a time.”
FEU Sophomore cager Ryan Roose Garcia went on to capture the UAAP 73 Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) recognition for topping the individual statistical points and most importantly for leading the Tamaraw squad even at the jaws of defeat as they ended the elimination round as the top seeded team with 12-2 win loss card, the team’s best finish since winning the crown in 2005.
Indeed, the 20 year old Zamboangeno has transformed himself from an ordinary basketball hopeful to a formidable presence inside the court, which is exemplified in his masterful clutch plays. Garcia finished the eliminations with 59.2 statistical points, followed by NU’s Emmanuel Mbe with 59 points, while FEU’s Aldrech Ramos is third with 58.7 points, completing the Mythical five are UE’s Paul Lee and Ken Acibar. FEU’s Reil Cervantes was disqualified from being included in the Mythical Five circle because of his one-game suspension last August given by the UAAP board, after earning two unsportsmanlike foul for the current season.
Meanwhile, FEU’s Terrence Romeo was the runaway Rookie of the Year (ROY) winner beating Ateneo's Art dela Cruz and La Salle's Luigi de la Paz. Romeo, who bagged last season’s juniors' MVP award, had 37.8 while dela Cruz only came up with 31 points. Note that National University standout rookie, Emmanuel Mbe (59 points) is not qualified for the ROY, because a player must need to be straight out of High School to win it.
The formal awarding is expected during the finals and should RR Garcia become the official MVP, he will become the first FEU point guard since Johnny Abarrientos to win the MVP. This is also the third straight year that both the MVP and the top rookie honors went to the same school.
Ateneo started it in 2008, when Rabeh Al-Hussaini and Ryan Buenafe claimed the awards. Last year, despite being ousted in the semifinals, University of Santo Tomas (UST) found relief in the duo of Dylan Ababou and Jeric Teng, who snared the MVP and ROY trophies, respectively.
Other notable FEU cagers who bagged the MVP plum were Joselito Roa (1961), import Anthony Williams (1981), Garcia’s current coach Glenn Capacio (1983) and Arwind Santos in 2004 and 2005.
