With their backs against the wall, the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons kept toe to toe with the league-leading Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles, Wednesday afternoon. Leading by as much as 12 points in the third quarter, it seemed like they were en route to another upset of David and Goliath proportions.
But the end game breaks did not favor UP. The upset attempt turned into an expected Ateneo show.
With 4:01 left on the final frame and the game tied at 79-all, Jun Manzo — who was pressuring Ateneo’s Jolo Mendoza at backcourt — was called for a foul. This came as a big surprise to Manzo and the whole UP bench, because Manzo’s good defense had resulted in Mendoza failing to bring the ball across before the eight second deadline. However, the officials decided otherwise.
“Ang labo kasi siyempre nawala na yung bola sa kanya, so dinive ko pero feeling ko bad call talaga yun dahil shot clock na rin, eight seconds. Wala tayong magagawa kasi ganun yung tawag eh. Breaks of the game eh,” the 5-foot-9 floor general expressed.
“Ang labo talaga. Pero trabaho ng referee yun eh, bigay na natin sa kanila.”
Coach Bo Perasol also shared the same sentiment but expressed his desire for the officials to do a better job.
“Sobrang [crucial] yun [eight second violation], but it happens. Hindi naman puwede mag-delve to that. That’s something they decided on, and can’t reverse that, we have to find a way on how we can play through that,” the UP mentor said.
“But then again I’m hoping the officials will have a better job, because we exert a way to find a win.”
That debatable call proved to be crucial, because afterwards, Mendoza sunk the ensuing free throws and the momentum of the game shifted to the Blue Eagles. Shots kept falling for the men in blue, while UP struggled to make decent shots. Eventually, the Fighting Maroons bowed to the Blue Eagles.
“Kung sa amin yung bola siguro mag-iiba na yung laro. Nung nakuha nila yung bola, naka-shoot sila eh kaya tuloy-tuloy yung momentum nila,” the Agusan del Norte native shared, “Parang ibang iba yung aura namin kanina eh. Gusto talaga namin maglaro as a team. Yun yung na-feel ko kanina, gusto sana talaga namin talunin yung unbeaten team sa UAAP.”
Despite falling to a 5-8 record and failing to pull off an upset, UP’s bid to the last Final Four ticket is still alive.
The Fighting Maroons have one last eliminations game against the National University on Saturday. If they win that, and the Adamson Soaring Falcons beat the FEUTamaraws on the same day, UP will figure in a do-or-die against the Tamaraws for the last Final Four berth.
“What’s in our hands right now is to have a victory against NU. It’s not going to help us if we’re going to lose. And we have to find a way to keep the energy going and make sure na manalo muna kami,” Perasol shared.
“Yung sinasabi ni Coach Bo nga na pag do-or-die na, dun na nalalaman yung character ng players eh. Dun na titignan kung ano ba gagawin namin sa ganitong sitwasyon kapag high stakes na,” Manzo added.
But with the scenario, not everything is in UP’s control. With that, Perasol and Manzo simply want to focus on what they can do and hope for the best.
