This is AI generated summarization, which may have errors. For context, always refer to the full article.
‘He’s going to attract the best defenders. He’s going to attract defensive schemes,’ says Ateneo coach Tab Baldwin of 6-foot-7 Filipino-American forward Kymani Ladi
MANILA, Philippines – Ateneo head coach Tab Baldwin hopes for better production across the board as he expects teams’ defenses to key in on Blue Eagles’ one-and-done forward Kymani Ladi.
The 6-foot-7 Filipino-American has been good as advertised, leading Ateneo to a 2-0 start in the UAAP Season 88 men’s basketball tournament with team highs of 22.0 points and 9.5 rebounds.
Ladi produced 26 points and 9 rebounds in an 86-83 overtime win over FEU on Saturday, September 20, then delivered 18 points and 10 rebounds in a 62-60 escape against UE on Wednesday, September 24.
Those kind of performances mean a bigger target on his back.
“He’s going to attract the best defenders. He’s going to attract defensive schemes. Other guys have got to step up in order to continue to get him some freedom of movement and some space,” said Baldwin.
“So the better the rest of our roster plays, the better Ky is going to play. But if he is at any point seen to be a real focal point of our offense, then the going will get tough for him and it will get tough for us as well.”
Ladi got sufficient support from the rest of his teammates in those first two games.
Against the Tamaraws, Dom Escobar and Jared Bahay also scored in double figures with 16 and 13 points, respectively, and combined for 10 rebounds, 7 assists, and 6 steals.
Bahay also delivered against the Red Warriors with 8 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists, with Joaqui Espina backstopping Ladi in scoring with 17 points on a 6-of-9 clip off the bench.
But Baldwin wants Ladi to get his teammates more involved as the Merritt College product logged zero assists against UE.
“I actually told Ky starting tonight that I thought the defense would be a little bit more focused on him. And I wanted to see a crooked number in the assist column. And you see, we don’t see that. We see a zero in the assist column,” said Baldwin.
“So I think more and more going forward, Ky’s going to have to make adjustments.”
It has been so far, so good for the Blue Eagles as they notched their first 2-0 start since they reigned in Season 85 in 2022.
“Two wins isn’t going to get us into the playoffs. But we’d rather be 2-0 than 1-1 or 0-2. So, it gives us a little bit of a platform. But you can’t take a breath at this point,” said Baldwin.
“We still have to put wins on the board. And we’ve got to continue to improve.” – Rappler.com