Jerom Lastimosa may not have been on the floor for too long but he sure made it count by leading Adamson University to a 75-70 win over Far Eastern University in the UAAP Season 85 Men’s Basketball Tournament.
The 5-foot-10 court general scored 23 points on the back of 5-of-8 three-point shooting in just 16:45 of action for the Soaring Falcons to keep his team’s season alive.
“Na-shock din ako sa performance ko. Blessed lang talaga na ganun yung nangyari ngayon sa game ko. Not only me pero sa teammates namin,” he said.
One thing noticeable about Lastimosa’s performance was that his role on the floor was very different to the one he, his teammates, and observers have been accustomed to.
Instead of him driving to the rim and playing the role of the team’s playmaker, Adamson coach Nash Racela and his staff opted to use the Dumaguete standout as a spot up shooter — and boy did it pay dividends.
“Today, he wasn’t playing the point. Nandun siya sa gilid, abang-abang. That’s why he was able to get open looks dun sa three points, something that he really missed before he got injured,” said Racela. “If you look at his three-point percentage prior to his injury, napakababa talaga. I think it was less than 20-percent.
“A lot of those were bad shots but today it’s nice that his teammates were able to look for him, make the right decisions, kaya nandun lang siya ready to take his shot.”
Adamson’s tweak with Lastimosa’s positioning and role proved to be a bane against FEU.
The Tamaraws’ coaching staff led by Olsen Racela and Eric Gonzales sought to make in-game changes immediately.
Indeed, Lastimosa is a player who commands the respect of the opponent and adjustments must be made to nullify his capabilities. 
“I guess FEU wasn’t also ready for that today kaya nagulat sila. They really made great adjustments dun sa game,” said Nash. “As a coaching staff, nataranta kami dun sa ginawa nila. Cholo [Anonuevo] playing the five, [Miguel] Ona playing the five. It was really a chess match between the two coaching staff.
“Buti na lang naubusan sila ng oras kasi kung mahaba-haba pa yun, malamang nakuha nila yung game.”
For his part, Lastimosa is just glad to be back on the floor. His season is not over and he will do everything to help the Soaring Falcons reach the Final Four.
Racela has gone all the way in his collegiate coaching career and Lastimosa is ready to be a good soldier for his mentor.
“Komportable naman kasi lahat naman ng players kung ano yung sasabihin ng coach mo, susundin mo lang talaga sistema nila,” he said.
