It was a bittersweet victory for the Lyceum of the Philippines University in the second round of the NCAA Season 99 Seniors Basketball Tournament as it came out on top against fellow Final Four contender Emilio Aguinaldo College in an 81-78 nail-biter, despite missing their team captain Enoch Valdez.
Though the Pirates secured the win and sole possession of the second spot in the standings, they lost more key pieces of their squad during their battle against the Generals.
With Valdez already sidelined due to an illness, his frontcourt mates, John Barba and John Bravo, may join him on the injury report, as the two forwards were unable to finish the game.
Barba was taken out of the game in the second quarter after sustaining an ankle sprain, while Bravo was carried off the floor himself after what appeared to be a knee injury. However, head coach Gilbert Malabanan is still awaiting the official diagnosis.
The timing of these setbacks for Lyceum could not have been worse, as they are scheduled for a rematch with the current number one team Mapua University who took the number one spot from them at the end of the first round.
On the bright side for the Pirates, they have a week’s worth of a break, as their game is still scheduled for Friday at 4:00 p.m.
“It’s a good thing kung may break kami mahaba, lalo na may injury sa mga players, but we don’t stop laro namin November 3, babalik kami. We’re gonna practice on November 1 and November 2,” said Malabanan.
“It’s a sacrifice, but yung team namin kailangan namin mag-sacrifice.”
In the absence of some of Malabanan’s trusted weapons, the bench stepped up against the Generals, with players like Jearlan Omandac, Renz Villegas, and Alvin Penafiel increasing their offensive workload to lead the Pirates to a win.
Omandac finished with a whopping 24 points and nine rebounds, and the combo-big shared that he was motivated to step up in the name of his injured teammates.
“Nag-motivate sa akin na wala yung team captain namin at na-injure pa si Barba sa amin. Naisip kong kailangan namin manalo,” said Omandac.
Malabanan later praised his squad and the bench for stepping up, stating that their ability to stay ready when their name is called is one of Lyceum’s biggest strengths.
“That’s the good thing dito sa team ko. My team is very unpredictable, hindi mo alam kung sino puputok at sino gagawa. That’s the good thing mga players ko, they’re always ready, when their name is called talagang ready,” the third-year Pirates head coach continued.
Should Valdez, Barba, and Bravo still be unavailable on Friday, Malabanan will need to turn to his bench once more to hold the fort against a tough Mapua team as both squads wrestle for the number one spot in the standings.
