Jerom Lastimosa was a proud man on the sidelines while he witnessed Adamson University seal a come-from-behind 56-55 victory over University of Santo Tomas in the second round of the UAAP Season 85 Men’s Basketball Tournament.
Wearing a protective boot, the 5-foot-10 court general watched as Cedrick Manzano converted an and-one play to deliver the Soaring Falcons’ fourth win of the season.
The victory strengthened their Final Four bid.
“It’s a great comeback,” said the Dumaguete native. “Feeling ko talaga, yung sacrifice nila at lahat, talagang binuhos nila lahat. Yun yung na-fe-feel ko. Kaya after the game, iiyakan talaga kami kasi ginawan nila ng paraan kahit tambak na kami nung third quarter.
“Walang nag-give up sa lahat para sa amin.”
Lastimosa is out of action indefinitely following his injury in the Soaring Falcons’ game against University of the Philippines last Wednesday.
The incident happened at the 5:42 mark of the fourth quarter when Lastimosa clashed with State U point guard JD Cagulangan while performing an acrobatic lay-up.
Though his current situation is a major setback, he just accepts that it is something that could happen to anyone.
“Actually, nung pagka-injury ko talaga, hindi ko talaga alam kung ano nangyari nung pagkabagsak ko. Wala ako nakita talaga kung ano nangyari sa paa ko eh. Dun ko na siya nalaman na si JD daw ang naapakan ko,” he explained.
“Wala lang naman. Para sa akin, wala eh. Okay lang yun kase (sa) basketball, it’s part of the game naman yung mga injuries talaga. So wala. Okay lang sa akin.”
As it is, Lastimosa is taking things slowly. The freak nature of the incident leaves quite a few unanswered questions, though.
Clearly, it is better for Adamson and their star player to nurse him through this difficult period.
“Yun nga eh. Hindi din nalalaman – hindi din nakikita ng doktor eh. Hindi kasi siya matawag ng ankle sprain kasi hindi siya sprain eh. Foot injury lang siguro. Dito siya sa toe eh. Dito sa shoelace part. Parang umangat lang yung buto,” said the 24-year-old combo guard.
“Sa November 17, hopefully fully recovered na ako but yun naman ang sabi ng doktor at PT namin na 1-2 weeks ako magpapahinga sa injury.”
Ultimately, Lastimosa was proud to see his teammates win without his intervention. It is not every day that a team finds a win without its most important player but the Soaring Falcons did it in impressive fashion.
When he returns, though, Adamson will no doubt be a more formidable prospect as the school chases a postseason ticket.
“Sinasabi ko naman sa kanila palagi na kayang-kaya nila manalo kahit wala ako. Kasi naglalaro sila hindi dahil sa kanila kundi dahil sa Adamson,” said the Adamson senior. “Yung Adamson naman, hindi naman Lastimosa lang nandun sa Adamson. Ang Adamson kasi, nandun lahat ng players.
“Itong game na to, yun yung learning experience nila na kahit wala kami ni Vince Magbuhos, kayang-kaya nila maglaro sa lahat ng games.”
