National University, currently owning the solo second spot, is establishing itself as a contender in the UAAP Season 86 Men’s Basketball Tournament.
The balanced Bulldogs currently hold second place with a 5-1 record, trailing only the undefeated University of the Philippines, who handed them their sole defeat.
NU head coach Jeff Napa believes his team is well-prepared to contend this season, having spent previous seasons proving themselves as one of the “Big Boys” in the league.
“Yun nga yung ineemphasize ko sa kanila na if you think you’re contenders, then just show them today that you’re contenders. Hindi pupwedeng magrerelax, hindi mindset ng winners at contenders yun,” said Napa after their 68-49 victory against University of the East last Wednesday.
The Bulldogs had a slow start defensively, allowing the Red Warriors to score 21 points in the opening frame. However, following some “tongue-lashing” from Napa, NU tightened its defense for the remainder of the game, allowing UE to score only 28 points in the next three quarters.
Napa explained to his players that if they genuinely want to be contenders, they must maintain their performance for the full 40 minutes.
“Narinig nila yung mga hindi kanais-nais marinig na dapat sabihin sa kanila to wake up. Yung term na tongue-lashing ba yun? yung tough love na sinasabi ninyo just to wake up lang yung mga players because we’re sending a wrong message nga nung first quarter,” said Napa on what he told his players after the first period.
“We’re sending a wrong message sa league na ito. Right from the start pa lang dapat pinapakita na namin yung strong message na yun,” he added.
“If we want to achieve our goal this season, we have to be focused on our goals and yung mindset namin na talagang contenders kami.”
Despite the need for constant wake-up calls, Napa remains confident that his team will turn heads this season.
The Bulldogs’ offensive strategy has been balanced in most of their games, with at least two players leading in scoring. On some nights, it’s guards Steve Nash Enriquez and Kean Baclaan, while on other days, it’s wingers Jake Figueroa and Patrick Yu, or Gambian center Omar John.
“Siguro 10,000 times confident ako sa mga players ko na ito. Hindi ko naman ila-lineup itong mga ito kung hindi ako confident na kaya nilang gawin yung imposible na pinapagawa ko sa kanila,” said Napa.
“Hindi naman ako gaya ng ibang teams na meron akong mga blue chips or superstar, ginagawa ko lang silang superstar doon sa role nila kaya ako nagiging confident na alam ko kaya nilang makapasok sa Final Four.”
NU will seek to solidify its hold on the second spot when they close out the first round against Adamson University at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion on Saturday.
