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As UP puts aside its controversial duel against La Salle, the Fighting Maroons hope to improve on their underwhelming starts in a bid to string up another winning streak in the second round
MANILA, Philippines – After UP’s heated and controversial duel against La Salle, Maroons head coach Goldwin Monteverde wants his team to focus on the positives.
“Whether we win or lose games, the important thing is what we could take heading towards the second round,” said Monteverde.
Before UP’s loss to defending champion La Salle — a rematch of last year’s UAAP men’s basketball finals — the Maroons cruised to six straight wins, all by double-digit margins.
The “spitgate” incident aside, which the UAAP settled by issuing stern warnings to La Salle coach Topex Robinson and UP player Reyland Torres, the Green Archers revealed the Maroons’ weaknesses.
UP tallied its lowest scoring output yet this season at 56 points in the showdown where the Maroons trailed most of the way.
Similar to their other first-round matches, the Maroons fell to an underwhelming start, playing catchup when the second half came around before ultimately succumbing to a La Salle sided that leaned on reigning MVP Kevin Quiambao’s heroics.
“We can’t play catch-up basketball every time,” said Monteverde. “We really need to work on that. We should know what to do to prevent this next time.”
The Maroons also missed the services of veteran point guard and leading scorer JD Cagulangan in the past two games, allowing the likes of Janjan Felicilda, Harold Alarcon, Gerry Abadiano, and Terrence Fortea to carry most of the offensive cudgels at the end of the first round.
According to Monteverde, Cagulangan will be back for their second-round opener against UST on Sunday, October 13.
Looking ahead, Monteverde hopes the Maroons remain focused on the ultimate goal of winning the title after bridesmaid finishes in the last two seasons.
“Life goes on, whatever happens, even if we won (against La Salle), it’s still the first round. There is still another round to face,” Monteverde said.
“What is important is to look at how to improve our game right now as a team.” – Rappler.com
