Kevin Quiambao played his heart out in De La Salle University’s 77-72 loss to archrival Ateneo de Manila University in the UAAP Season 86 Men’s Basketball Tournament, but he failed to keep his emotions in check.
Quiambao produced 17 points, 14 rebounds, and seven assists, but he also committed four fouls—one of which was a technical foul. His mixed performance was exemplified by his minus-2 rating during the 28 minutes he played on the floor.
The former National University Bullpup sat out a large stretch of the second half due to foul trouble, a situation that annoyed him after the game.
“Yung nangyari nga nung third quarter, na-frustrate nga ako. Yun nga, di ako makatulong sa team pero tinake ko lang ‘yun as a learning process lang. Tulad nga ng laging sinasabi ni coach, kailangan naming i-take ‘to as a lesson and move forward,” said Quiambao.
“Yun lang, medyo frustrated lang ako pero good thing naman nakabawi ako nung fourth pero kapos eh. Kulang talaga.”
As a Green Archer, losing to Ateneo is always painful. This game, in particular, was supposed to be a strong showing for La Salle, but things did not go to plan for Quiambao and his teammates.
The Green Archers, however, succumbed to the Blue Eagles during crunch time. Kai Ballungay’s three dunks and Mason Amos’s huge baskets turned the tide for Ateneo over La Salle.
If there was a silver lining for La Salle, it was the fact that this loss came early in the season and cannot harm any of its postseason hopes.
“Sa tingin namin, tapos na ‘tong Ateneo. Good thing nga ‘yung sinasabi ni coach (Topex Robinson) na ngayon nga nangyari. For now, recovery lang muna ako kasi it was a hell of a ballgame ang nangyari—ups and downs,” said the Gilas Pilipinas pool member.
The good thing for La Salle is that it has another game to fight for this Saturday. The Green Archers will face the University of Santo Tomas, which is on the hunt for its first win this season.
The Growling Tigers will be a tough team to beat. Quiambao and the rest of the Green Archers know that a win is imperative for them to get their campaign back on track.
“Madami pa kaming pwedeng pagtutunan. Madami pa kaming pwede i-cover up sa nangyari ngayon. So move on na kami sa UST this coming Saturday,” he said.
