Mathew Montebon was a scoring guard when he first arrived at Adamson University from Paul Smith’s College, but his evolution into a well-rounded player became key to their run in the UAAP Season 87 collegiate men’s basketball tournament.
After falling to a 3-7 record following a five-game skid midway through the season, the Soaring Falcons needed a massive fightback—and that’s exactly what they did.
Needing a win to force a playoff for the last Final Four spot last Saturday, Montebon made his presence felt in the assist department after being held scoreless.
He dished out seven assists to help Adamson beat Ateneo de Manila University, 69-55, giving them a shot at a semifinals spot.
Then, on Wednesday night, the Soaring Falcons clinched the number four seed by defeating the UE Red Warriors, 68-55.
In that game, Montebon was back to his playmaking ways, tallying six assists while also contributing 13 points.
It was the shot in the arm the Falcons needed after the graduation of Jerom Lastimosa and missing out on Baby Falcon Tebol Garcia.
Seeing the evolution of Montebon delighted head coach Nash Racela, who viewed it as a key factor in how they managed to crawl back from their 3-7 record.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
“The last two games, ito si Monty medyo mayabang because the last two games he had seven and six assists, something that is not Monty-like,” said Racela, as Adamson returned to the Final Four after missing out last year.
“That’s what he’s saying earlier about being unselfish, which I think the other players appreciated. You look at our assist numbers in the last two games, we had 20, today we had 23, which means they’re starting to play as one unit, which yun naman dapat talaga.”
For Montebon, his assist numbers rising is a testament to how Adamson is finally jelling and peaking at the right time.
The Soaring Falcons closed out the second round by winning three of their final four games, earning the last spot in the semifinals.
“I just knew coming into this season, we had a lot of talent on our team. I know not a lot of people thought that at the start of the season, but I think there were a couple of games during the preseason where I was like, okay, this team could go far into the season,” said Montebon.
“I think to start the UAAP season… I think we all had to put it together. The first round, it took a little bit of time, but then, in the second round, we started getting it together, so all credit. Just the chemistry growing and then the camaraderie that’s been growing as well.”
