The past three days have been nothing short of exhilarating for Paolo Medina.
For the first time, the 22-year-old BS Information Technology Entrepreneurship student played the game he loved most, NBA 2K, in front of a packed house at the Doreen Fernandez Black Box, Arete Ateneo, while proudly representing his school.
“It’s been crazy. The past three days have been the craziest experience for me,” he shared with Nico Rocha a day after winning the UAAP Esports NBA2K24 Tournament. “I’m very overwhelmed, and it doesn’t feel real.”
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
Medina’s path to joining the Blue Eagles may have been swift, but it was anything but easy.
Last February, as the UAAP was laying out plans for its esports tournament with an expected April start date, Loyola Gaming—the esports team of Ateneo—decided to hold tryouts for their NBA 2K team.
“I heard rumblings from our gaming org, Loyola Gaming, that there might be a UAAP Esports tournament. I was interested right away,” said Medina, who mentioned that he would have joined the tryouts even if the UAAP had held tournaments for other games like Call of Duty or Fortnite.
For three days, 15 aspirants competed in a mini-tournament under the watchful eye of E-Gilas head coach Nite Alparas. By the end of it, Medina emerged victorious, sweeping the competition and securing a spot on the team alongside Justin Lagac and Luis Jovellanos.
However, the tournament was postponed until August, giving Medina and the Eagles more time to hone their skills.
When the tournament finally began, Medina started off shaky. Fortunately, Justin Lagac stepped up on Day 2, helping the team advance to the Final Four.
From there, Medina took over, sweeping UST’s Daemiel Argame in the semifinals before dominating La Salle’s Kegan Yap in the best-of-three finals.
Medina’s secret to success? He credits much of it to the lessons he learned during his time as a student manager for Tab Baldwin’s Blue Eagles.
Back in UAAP Season 85, Medina was part of the school’s basketball staff. There, he picked up valuable strategies from the 5-on-5 game that he was able to apply to NBA 2K.
“I’m not gonna lie. I’ve been telling sila Migs (Asis) this, I’ve been telling the entire team this, that there’s this principle that after you shoot a shot, you’re supposed to get back on pillars. The guards are supposed to run back on D to stop the fastbreak. I brought that to 2K. When I shoot it, I run back,” he explained.
“Also, they are very big on crashing the boards. This is one of the stats we were tracking in Season 85—who wasn’t crashing, and we called that ‘no crash.’ I always try to include that in my game.”
Now in his senior year at Ateneo, Medina is hoping to continue his involvement with the team if the next edition of the tournament takes place in the second semester. If not, he remains determined to contribute to the growth of NBA 2K in the country.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
“I hope that I am still able to compete. If what I’ve heard is true—that it happens this season—I hope I can still be involved. But I would still love to pave the way again and maybe take this to the next level,” he expressed.
“Hopefully, by the next season, it’s pro-am. Hopefully, this is the only ‘Play Now’ tournament ever. That really is the esports side of 2K. Now, the face of the game is the 5-on-5 game mode. When it’s a 5-on-5 game, you really have to have spacing, set a screen, and know how to get away. Hopefully, it happens next season,” he added.
“This would only help the national team more.”
