Another Bullpup has decided to grow up as a Bulldog.
Athletic 6-foot-1 winger Nat Tulabut has committed to staying with National University on Sunday.
The development was confirmed to Tiebreaker Times by Tulabut himself and Bulldogs head coach Jeff Napa.
For the 19-year-old Bullpup, there were two key factors in helping him decide to stay in NU — loyalty to the school and having a NU lifer in Napa as a head coach.
“Yung loyalty kasi feeling ko po makakatulong po ako sa NU,” he told Tiebreaker Times. “Para kay Coach Jeff, kilalang coach siya e kaya alam ko na matutulungan niya ko maangat yung laro ko.”
Also helping make this decision an easy one was he will be alongside former Bullpups teammates in Steve Nash Enriquez, Janjan Felicilde, Karl Gloria, PJ Palacielo, and Reyland Torres.
“Siyempre, mga teammates ko sila dati e. Hindi na ako mag-aadjust. Best friend ko po si Reyland e,” he quipped.
Moreover, Tulabut also gets to play alongside fellow Kapampangans in Jake Figueroa, Jolo Manansala, and Jiam Quiambao.
“Sobrang excited din kasi mga kababayan ko yun. Last time kasi wala kong kasama na kababayan ko e.”
During UAAP Season 82, Tulabut normed 4.5 points, 4.88 rebounds, and 1.25 assists. Seasons 83 and 84 were supposed to be his breakout years but were cancelled due to the ongoing pandemic.
Eligible for Season 85, Tulabut looks to work on a lot of things during the off-season.
“Mas pupursigehin ko pa training ko. Kahit wala pa ko sa Bulldogs, pagsisikapan ko pa na maingat yung laro ko. Marami pa akong kailangan i-improve, lalo na sa shooting,” he said.
“Maraming malalakas na teams pero hindi namin ipapahiya yung NU at ibibigay namin yung 100-percent sa NU. Pero maguumpisa yan sa training. Every workout, kailangan maging focus kami sa ginagawa namin para madala namin sa game.”
