And La Salle’s woes continued to pile up.
In the middle of a losing skid to fall outside the Top 4, the Green Archers absorbed another blow with the MCL injury of ace forward Mason Amos nearing the end of the first round in the UAAP Season 88 men’s basketball tournament.
‘I have faith in you, Lord,’ said Amos after his MRI results confirmed the suspected right knee injury he suffered late in La Salle’s 82-78 loss to National University over the weekend at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion in España.
Amos will be out for at least 4-6 weeks, putting back-to-back finalists La Salle in further jeopardy for the rest of the second round of action with its Final Four bid and a title redemption tour hanging in the balance.
The 6-foot-7 Filipino-Australian transferee exited the match in the 7:03 mark of the fourth quarter following a hard collission with NU’s Gelo Santiago.
Amos, according to head coach Topex Robinson, heard something popped in his right knee that prompted his immediate transport to the Makati Medical Center.
A transferee from Ateneo and a standout in Gilas Pilipinas, hopes were high for Amos in his La Salle debut, after serving his eligibility last year, in carrying the torch following the graduation of two-time UAAP Kevin Quiambao.
He’s averaging 8.2 points, 3.2 assists and 2.8 rebounds through five games as the Green Archers limped to a 2-3 slate so far with two losses in a row in a tough post-Quiambao era.
Included in La Salle’s struggle was a 93-84 loss to University of Santo Tomas in the opening week before trailing by as many as 33 points in an 81-74 loss to Ateneo and NU.
The wins by the Green Archers were also by the slimmest of margins, escaping Adamson, 60-58, and Far Eastern University, 74-72, ahead of duels against winless but dangerous UE as well as fierce rival UP to end the round.