Basketball is a team sport yet it can’t be helped that an individual will stand out whenever important games are played.
The Finals MVP award exists to honor the best player in a championship series, which most of the time comes from the winning team. In the recently concluded UAAP Men’s Basketball tourney, Ange Kouame of the Blue Eagles earned the trophy through his stellar averages of 17.7 points on 50% shooting, 11 boards, and 3 blocks a game. Kouame’s heroic performance, banged up knee and all, was just too much for the Fighting Maroons to handle.
Seeing him anchor Ateneo under such circumstances was nothing short of inspirational. As a matter of fact, it even inspired us to take a trip down memory lane to list down some of the best UAAP Finals MVP performances we’ve had in the past few years.
Thirdy Ravena, Ateneo (Season 81 Finals vs UP Fighting Maroons)
Finals Averages: 29.5 ppg, 8 rpg, 7.5 apg. 2.5 spg
The Ateneo Blue Eagles ended the UP FIghting Maroons dream season with a dominant sweep in the Finals. UP simply had no chance against ADMU, who was bent on defending their crown. Shutting the door on the Maroons was King Eagle Thirdy Ravena who dropped 38 points in Game 2.
Rabeh Al-Hussaini, Ateneo Blue Eagles (Season 72 Finals vs UE Red Warriors)
Finals Averages: 22.3 ppg, 11.6 rpg
Al-Hussaini might not have made it big in the pros but back in his Ateneo days, he played like an absolute beast. In the last dance of Season 72 against the UE Red Warriors, the 6-foot-7 stretch big set the tone for the series, posting 28 points and 14 boards. And to put the finishing touches, he scored 21 markers and once again, grabbed 14 rebounds in the title-clincher for ADMU.
Jeron Teng, De La Salle Green Archers (Season 79 Finals vs Ateneo Blue Eagles)
Finals Averages: 19 ppg, 3.5 rpg. 2.5 apg, 52 FG%
Even Coach Tab Baldwin wasn’t able to effectively devise a scheme that will slow down this former King Archer. In the Finals of Season 79, Teng’s campaign included a game-winning shot, and a 28-point Game 2 outing as DLSU swept Ateneo. Being in a team with a dominant player like Ben Mbala — and beating him out for the MVP trophy — says a lot about how good Jeron Teng was.
Alfred Aroga, NU Bulldogs (Season 77 Finals vs FEU Tamaraws)
Finals Averages: 16 ppg, 13 rpg
Alfred Aroga’s efforts in the Season 77 finale made him the first foreign student-athlete to win the Finals MVP trophy in the UAAP. In the championship series versus the heavily favored Tams, the Cameroonian center stood his ground and held the fort for NU in three games. In the decider, he stamped 24 points, 18 rebounds and 2 blocks to guide the Bulldogs to their first Men’s Basketball title in 60 years.