University of the Philippines has been nothing but dominant on paper.
The Fighting Maroons cruised to a 6-0 record in the UAAP Season 87 collegiate men’s basketball tournament, with all their games decided by double digits.
However, according to the team, they have not been as dominant as they would like to be.
UP assistant coach Christian Luanzon used their games against University of the East and Far Eastern University as examples, noting that they played sluggishly in the fourth quarter.
He also cited their win over the University of Santo Tomas on Wednesday, where they rallied from a slow first half.
“Siguro from you guys, from the crowd, the outside looking in, it looks like not a close game from the final score. From the coaches on the sideline, parang feeling namin close game lagi eh,” said Luanzon.
“I see your point because by the numbers, we’ve won by double figures. This is something that, you know, we reminded the players not to play the score,” he continued.
“We’ve seen it happen twice already, starting with the UE game and the FEU game. We were up by as much as 26, and then it was brought down to I think 11 or 10.”
Luanzon mentioned that despite the Fighting Maroons’ unblemished record this season, it has not come without flaws and challenges.
The trusted deputy of head coach Goldwin Monteverde emphasized the importance of taking each opponent seriously and with respect, regardless of their standings.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
“One thing that Coach Gold always mentioned, and that we’ve discussed here already, is that obviously, it only takes one point to win a game. It also takes one point to lose a game,” said Luanzon.
“The meaning of that is ang ine-emphasize namin sa kultura dito sa UP is that valuing each possession – regardless of who we play. That’s why yung preparation namin, whether it’s a team that is on top of the standings or a team that’s below the standings, the preparation is always the same.”
Harold Alarcon also echoed his coach’s sentiments, stating that their undefeated record means nothing at this point as they have yet to reach their main goal.
The Fighting Maroons seek to complete a first-round sweep on Sunday when they face last season’s Finals tormentor, the De La Salle University Green Archers.
“Confidence siguro okay pa rin, okay sa amin yan paparating sa La Salle game. Pero iniisip lang namin na baka mag sobra na yung confidence namin, maging complacent kami, and nire-remind lang namin yung bawat isa na stay leveled,” said Alarcon, who had 16 points against UST.
“Malayo pa yung UAAP; patapos pa lang yung first round, and hindi naman yung first round lang yung goal namin eh. Hindi naman second round yung goal namin. Ang goal talaga namin ay yung tapos ng UAAP – championship.”
