Second-generation cager Andre Paras finally made his debut with the AMA Online Education Titans Tuesday afternoon. And after three years away from competitive basketball, the former University of the Philippines Fighting Maroon turned actor was just happy to be back at the hard court.
“It’s actually a great experience for me.
“It’s been a long time since I last played a competitive game and at least now, I know what to work on and what we need to work on as a team,” the 21-year-old shared.
And he made a good account of himself, playing as the starting power forward for AMA. In 35 minutes of game time, he tallied only five points but was able to grab 10 rebounds, dish out three assists, and swatting away five shots. He himself was surprised that he was able to finish with that line, even if he displayed a lot of hustle all throughout the game.
“Honestly, I’m really surprised because I really relied to help my team on defense,” the 6-foot-4 bruiser shared.
“I believe that defense wins games. The game just came to me, pag open take the shot. But I need more repetitions [off the court].”
Still, the Titans lost to Cignal, 86-76. But with his first game under his belt, and a “lenient” schedule and “supportive” network behind him, he knows what he needs to work on for the rest of their Foundation Cup campaign.
“Honestly, I was aware that my size was average here so I can’t rely on it. So, we really have to be physically prepared,” said Paras, who had even attempted a dunk at one point of the game. “I really have to work on my outside game. I’m going to mostly be on the outside kasi at this moment, you can’t really go out against guys that are stronger — kapaan pa rin.
“I really have to work on my outside game.”
With the conference still in its early stages, time is on Andre Paras’ side.
“If you love what you do, go for it because we are young and we have opportunities na minsan lang makarating sa ‘yo e.”
