In his fifth and final year, Jc Macalalag has grown from a relatively unknown role player into one of the top scoring options of no less than one of the most prestigious collegiate programs in the country, the DLSU Green Archers. 

The 23-year-old guard is averaging 11 points per game this season, up from seven a year ago, which ranks second on the team behind Joaquin Tovera (11.2). He set a new career-best this season with 28 points on only 16 shots, eclipsing his previous high of 18 from a season ago, and this is also the highest single-game total from anyone on the Green Archers’ roster so far this season.

Macalalag’s personal scoring achievement came in La Salle’s second-round win over the UST Growling Tigers last week. He was clearly looking for his shot, playing with a newfound swagger that has communicated to all those in attendance that he is aware that he is one of this team’s top players. 

He followed that career-high outing with 11 points in their latest win over the ADMU Blue Eagles, and the total could have been higher had he converted a couple of easy looks as he was seemingly surprised that his moves had gotten him that open. Though his numbers against Ateneo were not as gaudy, it was clear that he had established himself near the top of the Green Archers’ pecking order with the way he carried himself as he consistently attacked and looked for his shot.

The statistical leap that Macalalag has taken has come because of his shotmaking inside the arc. He is shooting 44.0 percent from three, close to last year’s 45.8 percent, but his two-point percentage has more than doubled, from 26.9 percent to 57.4 percent, lifting his overall field goal shooting mark from 32.9 percent to 53.2 percent on just under four more attempts per game.

That scoring has come at the expense of his playmaking though, with his assists down from 2.2 to one per game. However, he does turn the ball over far less (0.3 per game, from 0.9 last year), so his assist-to-turnover ratio has actually improved from 2.4 to 3.3. 

Macalalag has made a name for himself with La Salle as a defense-first, secondary playmaker who could hit threes, but he now attacks the basket with the confidence of a star, taking a straight line to the hoop instead of relying on his usual spin move or crossover.

This type of progression is quite uncommon for the Green Archers, who typically recruit big-name stars who play heavy minutes from the beginning of their tenure. Guards such as Andrei Caracut, Aljun Melecio, Kib Montalbo, Evan Nelle, Mark Nonoy and Jacob Cortez arrived as high-profile recruits or transfers and played significant roles immediately. Meanwhile, Macalalag, an LSGH alumnus, played spot minutes as a rookie, maximizing the time opened by Schonny Winston’s controversial injury, before becoming a key role player in DLSU’s Season 86 and 88 championship runs.

Other schools use this more traditional path, with current stars Reinhard Jumamoy of the NU Bulldogs and Mark Llemit of UST as examples of role players who matured into bigger roles in their final years. La Salle (and their rival UP Fighting Maroons) tend to deviate from this, which makes Macalalag’s emergence all the more refreshing.

The Green Archers are in the thick of the Final Four hunt, sitting third at 6-4 with four games left in the eliminations following their win over Ateneo. Macalalag should remain a major piece after establishing himself as one of the team’s top wings, even as head coach Topex Robinson shuffled the starting wing spots early in the season. Regardless of how this season ends for La Salle, he is setting himself up for a long professional career as a steady guard who can do it all, but most importantly, knows how to pick his spots and fit in within a team’s system.

Scheduling Note: Up next for DLSU (6-4) is NU (7-3) whom they will face on November 8, Sunday, at 2:30 pm in the Smart Araneta Coliseum. This is a crucial match in the race for the Final Four as the Bulldogs and Green Archers are second and third, respectively, in the standings.