Coming into the season, Jd Tungcab was pegged to have a breakout season under first-year Adamson head coach Franz Pumaren.
After starting two games this season, the 18-year-old swing man fell out of the Adamson University Soaring Falcons’ rotation. He was even a DNP in three of Adamson’s first 12 games. And when he did play, he only had spot minutes – averaging just 14.0 minutes per contest.
According to the sophomore, he had done something that irked his new mentor, leading to him being in the dog house.
“Iniintindi ko na lang kasi alam ko na ako rin naman na ako mali. Alam ko rin na malaki expectation sa akin ni coach. Natuto ako sa nangyaring yun,” the Adamson High School standout shared.
And it had something to do with his aggressiveness on defense — or lack thereof.
“Iniisip ko yung mga mali ko na dapat kong itama. Kung anong ginagawa ko na hindi fit sa sistema, binabago,” the 6-foot-1 guard said.
“Dati, hindi ako dumi-defense, di naglalaro ng consistent. Yun yung binabago ko ngayon, dapat tuloy-tuloy, consistent laro ko.”
Sunday afternoon, Tungcab made most of the 12 minutes he was given in a blowout win against the National University Bulldogs. He scored nine points, all coming in the final frame. Moreover, he displayed tenacity on the defensive end that drew praise from Pumaren.
“Well that’s what I’ve been stressing, guys coming off the bench, guys sitting on the bench, when the time comes that you’ll be playing, might as well make the most out of it,” the first-year Adamson head coach said.
“If you’ll recall, when the season started, Tungcab was the starter, then he went down to the third group, but he worked his way up again.”
When Tungcab heard about this, he could not hide his smile but immediately downplayed it, knowing that he has to be consistent to earn his coach’s trust.
“Nagpapasalamat ako sa sinabi niya, pero di pa rin ako kuntento sa nangyari ngayon. Mas hihigitan ko pa. Kung anong gusto ni coach, tutuloy-tuloy kong kunin yun,” he said.
“Sa nangyaring yun, nirerespeto ko. Kung anong ginagawa ni coach, tiwala lang ako, alam ko namang may gustong siyang ginagawa para ikakapanalo namin.”
And it could not have gone at a better time, as the young Soaring Falcons look to shock the competition come the Final Four.
