After six years, Jose Rizal University finally defeated San Beda University in the NCAA.
On Tuesday, the Heavy Bombers scrapped out an 83-80 win over the powerhouse Red Lions in a campaign-defining win.
The last time JRU defeated San Beda was in season 92 – last September 6, 2016, via a 97-88 victory.
Outside of the win, what impressed Heavy Bombers head coach Louie Gonzalez was the composure shown by his team.
“Sa amin naman, the biggest thing there is… Ayun pa rin eh, diba? ‘Yung 20-points na lamang namin in the middle of the game – siguro ‘yun ‘yung pinakamalaking kalaban namin sa larong ‘to. Are we gonna be satisfied na winning by 20, but we were just halfway? Or are we gonna finish this strong,” shared the head tactician.
“We know for a fact na may winning culture ‘yung team na ‘yun eh.”
Still, there’s still a long way to go for JRU.
San Beda managed to cut the lead down to two in the fourth quarter of the game, 82-80. But maturity played a big factor in the game and helped them attain the win.
Before the pandemic, JRU had already been on the run, building a tough set of players for the upcoming years. However, it slowed down due to the crisis.
But their results have made all the hard work worth it, as they expect to surpass their past win-loss records in the league.
“Yung na-build namin, medyo na-slow down kami dahil dun sa pandemic. Pero as expected, kasama ‘dun sa program na alam ko later on ma ma-mature ‘yung mga katawan nung mga players ko, titigas na itong mga players ko. But more importantly, ‘yung mental toughness nila,” shared Gonzalez.
After the game, Gonzalez and the team will go back to the drawing board to review the game and see where they had lapsed. Then they aim to just be better starting this Friday against Lyceum of the Philippines University.
“Siguro ito ‘yung babalikan ko later on pag rineview ko ‘ano ‘yung nangyari, baka naging mali mindset ‘yung mindset namin. Siguro nagiging succesful kami kasi we work together.”
