For all the cheers that greeted National University’s return to the Final Four of the UAAP Season 88 Men’s Basketball Tournament, head coach Jeff Napa was not letting his Bulldogs get too comfortable.
Moments after NU relied on Mark Parks’ go-ahead and-one conversion to survive a gritty Adamson University Soaring Falcons squad, Napa’s tone at the postgame press conference was far from celebratory.
His words reflected the competitiveness and unforgiving nature of a tightly-contested eight-team field that has defined Season 88.
While Napa acknowledged that NU has come a long way from last year’s seventh-place finish in an all-Filipino Season 87 campaign, the fifth-year Bulldogs tactician emphasized that the real challenge lies in keeping pace with — and even surpassing — the league’s top contenders.
Among these are defending champions UP Fighting Maroons and Final Four aspirants DLSU Green Archers, UST Growling Tigers, Ateneo Blue Eagles, the Soaring Falcons, and the FEU Tamaraws.
“Kailangan, we have to take care of our own and be ready, especially dahil last stretch na ito ng second round. Kaya very crucial for us yung level of competition namin, kami dapat yung mage-raise ng bar talaga,” the 44-year-old Nationalian said Saturday evening at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion in Manila.
“Hindi yung mga kalaban namin, kami dapat yung magdi-dictate yung bar kung ano gusto namin,” he added.
“Yon yung challenge ko sa team na mataas dapat at dapat ipakita yung best performance niyo all the way. Para at least, kahit papaano, yung goal na gusto talaga nila mangyari is unti-unti makukuha talaga nila ng tama.”
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
With a 9-2 record securing their spot in the Final Four, the Bulldogs may be sitting comfortably atop the standings — especially with FEU, the skidding Growling Tigers, and the cellar-dwelling UE Red Warriors next on their schedule.
Still, Napa knows better than to allow complacency.
He is well aware that once the postseason begins, no lead or record guarantees safety, particularly in what many consider the most fiercely-contested UAAP season in recent years, where any contender can topple another on any given day.
Hot on the Bulldogs’ heels are the Fighting Maroons, a team NU lost to twice in the eliminations, currently ranked second at 8-3. The Green Archers, without Mason Amos and Kean Baclaan, sit third at 6-4.
Tied for fourth are the Growling Tigers and the Blue Eagles at 5-5, followed by the Soaring Falcons in fifth at 5-6, while the Tamaraws remain very much in the Final Four race with a 4-6 record at sixth.
Now assured of a Final Four berth, Napa revealed that the challenge goes beyond simply racking up wins. NU’s pursuit of the top seed and a twice-to-beat advantage is also about sustaining a level of basketball worthy of a title contender in a season where a single possession can decide the outcome of a game.
“‘Yon nga yung sinasabi ko sa kanila, yung leveling up our game coming to the last stretch of the second round is very crucial for us,” the decorated juniors head coach said.
“Dito mare-recognize if ano ba talaga kami. ‘Yon yung lagi ko prini-preach sa kanila na kailangan niyo ipakita talaga yung next level ninyo para whatever happens, we will come up ready dito sa last stretch ng second round going all the way sa Final Four.”
