Bright Akhuetie suffered another dismal afternoon against the Far Eastern University Tamaraws.
He and the rest of the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons experienced their second defeat in three games, 73-89, while he only recorded nine points and 11 rebounds and four assists – below his standards of 11.5 points, 13.5 rebounds and six assists.
The 6-foot-7 center’s presence in the Fighting Maroons’ paint is something that UAAP observers respect and fear at the same time, and Tamaraws coach Olsen Racela is one of those coaches who does so.
Racela shared, “Si Bright hindi pwedeng single coverage lang. Magaling na player. Nakita ko na siya sa NCAA, when I covered NCAA. Nakaktakot pa sa kanya ngayon kasi he’s a an all-around player now ganado na siya pumasa with (all the) weapons UP has.
“Mahirap yung ganung kalabanin ‘di ba? Maganda na-limit namin siya, na limit din namin yung iba. Again, it was a defensive game,” added the sophomore head coach.
However, unbeknownst to most, the Nigerian student-athlete was nursing an injury during the contest.
“My right hand was kind of numb during the game and before the game. I had some issues with my hand. I’m gonna (go to the doctor) tomorrow to prepare for our next game,” says the former Perpetual Altas stalwart.
It was a long afternoon for the Fighting Maroons. The Tamaraws limited the Diliman cagers to 44.12 percent from the field, and saw to it that they failed to get the lead at any point of the contest.
“We didn’t really do good on defense plus we had a slow start. I think we lost it in the first half,” lamented Akhuetie.
Fighting Maroons mentor Bo Perasol was a notable absence from the Fighting Maroons’ bench, as he served his one-game suspension after his ejection against the Ateneo Blue Eagles. But Akhuetie downplayed the third-year head coach’s absence.
“Not really coach Bo’s absence because we all did everything we did in practice. We prepared well for the game altogether so it’s just us out here executing everything the same way we did in practice… The other coaches are good,” admitted the Physical Education student.
“We trust them and it could have been better but we didn’t do a good job on our side.”
