Humblebola

By Karlo Lovenia

“Success is when reality catches up to our imagination.” – Simon Sinek

The Season 81 UP Fighting Maroons changed everything for the Diliman program. From dreaming of just winning one game, they made the leap to aiming for the richest of prizes: a UAAP championship. 

They were serious about attaining this dream. That’s why the next season, they paraded one of the most talented UAAP rosters in league history. On paper, it spoke for itself. MVP Bright Akhuetie. Generational talent Kobe Paras. Graceful athlete Ricci Rivero. Offensive wizard Juan Gomez de Liano. Elite role player Javi Gomez de Liano. It was a group that looked complete.

Looked complete.

Because they only looked complete, the UP faithful kept on waiting anxiously for the true potential of the Season 82 Fighting Maroons. They were branded as cardiac, but the community wanted them to be elite. They wanted them to be real; legitimate title contenders that matched the talent in their roster. 

They waited. And waited. Until Renzo Subido ended the waiting for the UP fan by pulling up for a dagger from all the way in Espana.

The title contender never arrived. Reality never caught up to imagination. 

Despite the heartbreak of 82, the UP program didn’t stop at trying to build the best roster imaginable. Then head coach and now program director Bo Perasol continued to recruit, locking up the commitments of NU Bulldogs Carl Tamayo, Gerry Abadiano, and Terrence Fortea, while also securing the services of Zavier Lucero, CJ Cansino, Malick Diouf, and JD Cagulangan. They also signed legendary High School coach Goldwin Monteverde to take over head coaching duties. 

The COVID-19 pandemic wasn’t going to stop UP from doing the work needed to build a championship roster. But building a championship roster was one thing. Actually getting that roster to win a championship was another.

Enter Season 84.

The pace of the season has been fast, but that hasn’t stopped UP from establishing an identity. What was their identity?

Cardiac perhaps? They played a lot of close games, but it felt like a stretch to describe them as cardiac. They weren’t getting in close games because they were careless. Other teams were just as good as them, a testament to the talent pool of the UAAP more than anything. As a matter of fact, they were executing some of their best basketball during the clutch this season. 

Talented? On paper, yes, but even that feels like downplaying their overall package as a group. Their star pieces are playing up to par, but their coaching staff deserves as much credit for getting them to be this prepared and composed for all their games.

A damn good basketball team? Simple. Too simple. But sometimes, simple is the best way to describe something. That perfectly describes the UP Fighting Maroons. They were talented. They executed well. It all meshed together well. 

They were a damn good basketball team. But good wouldn’t be enough to win a championship. Good wouldn’t satisfy the dreams they wanted to turn into reality. To turn that dream into a reality, they needed to get past the best team in college basketball, the Ateneo Blue Eagles. 

Their duel with the Blue Eagles yesterday, May 1, 2022, was a classic that went down the wire. They started the game with an 18-point lead, but in classic Blue Eagle fashion, Ateneo came back and turned it into a back-and-forth affair. 

It seemed inevitable that Ateneo would catch up and hit the final nail in the coffin against UP. But the Fighting Maroons, in true Iskolar fashion, resisted their dominance and kept fighting back. 

Matatapang.

Their execution even looked better than the Blue Eagles at times. As a matter of fact, they ended the game +8 in terms of assists compared to Ateneo.

Matatalino.

One fearless James Spencer three and two ice-cold Ricci Rivero free throws later, they iced the game and created a moment. 

Walang takot kahit kanino.

The UP Fighting Maroons had done it. Not only did they end the streak of the Ateneo Blue Eagles, but they proved that they could truly hang with the big boys of college basketball. 

They held on and kept believing in themselves. The spirit of the Fighting Maroons was strong, arguably the strongest it’s been in years now. 

The excitement’s always burned. The hype’s never died. The difference is, unlike past years, the hype feels warranted. This time, it feels more real. 

The UP Fighting Maroons are legitimate title contenders. They’re a problem. A legitimate problem. Winning against the defending champions solidified this even more. 

Job’s not finished. Success hasn’t arrived yet. They’ll need to win three more games if they want their reality to finally catch up to their imagination. This is their best shot at getting their reality to catch up to their dreams of winning a UAAP championship.

By Pio Garcia

Super rookies have come and gone for the UP Fighting Maroons. They’ve had their fair share of diamond in the roughs that failed to pan out, erstwhile five-star recruits that failed to live up to expectations, and those that faded into relative obscurity after one round of elimination games.

With their looming third Final Four appearance, UP is once again parading a super rookie that has seemingly carried their fortune with him at the helm that can be easily missed by casual basketball fans. Unfortunately, it’s not Zav Lucero for those who are screaming at the top of their lungs “Hey I told you so this guy was good!” Nor is it Gerry Abadiano, who was dubbed by some as their point guard of the future. Or Malick Diouf who has severely underwhelmed in what was being touted as a legit challenge to Ateneo’s Angelo Kouame.

Believe it or not, UP’s Final Four fortunes hinge on 6’8” super rookie Carl Tamayo’s shoulders, who hasn’t generated as much buzz as he should be no thanks in particular to his boring Tim Duncan-like game.

As much as Lucero has provided the fireworks with an amazing three-game stretch where we saw him rack up 20-10 double-doubles left and right, his consistency remains to be a question mark. While basketball remains to be a sport that is mostly carried by highlight plays at a glance, at the end of the day, it all boils down to being effective with the rock, putting it in the basket, and doing it more times than your opponent.

That’s where Tamayo comes in.

While ranking second on the team in points (13.4), and rebounds (7.8), he also finishes in the top five of the team in terms of assists (1.5), steals (0.83), and blocks (0.67), and threes attempted (4.42). Tamayo is also one of only five players on this Fighting Maroons team that is shooting at 40% or better while hitting 33% from beyond the arc. They’re not exactly the numbers you would expect of a rookie in a star-laden lineup, much less a stretch big who is in his first foray into Seniors basketball. Much less, the level of consistency in which he has produced.

He’s been solid as a rock, and while many believe that CJ Cansino was the gem of their pandemic haul, I beg to disagree and strongly am riding the wagon that Carl Tamayo will dictate where UP will figure in the Final Four, or even beyond it, in the years to come.

Yes. While he may be good now, there is also the future to consider, where he pretty much will be a constant figure in any UP team Goldwyn Monteverde will field. The last UP big fresh off high school to have that much weight? Oh, some dude named Benjie Paras.

At face value, you may think, how is this guy the most important person on the team when Zavier Lucero outplays him in all the “valuable” stats and has quite the highlight reels dreams been made of, which includes a sick poster of De La Salle University’s premier big guy Justine Baltazar. One may even consider Ricci Rivero even, despite a shaky start, to be the anchor of the UP Fighting Maroons.

But come to think of it, if we watch closely, and observe harder, notice how in every lineup that UP put out on the floor with Carl Tamayo, the first touch of the basketball as it crosses the halfcourt has to be with Tamayo from the high post, on either elbow. Goldwyn is practically using basic basketball right there, and an underappreciated one at that with all these flashy wing players flying about.

Make basketball simple. 

When you have a talented big man, whose polished offensive skills are unparalleled by only a few, namely Justine Baltazar and Ange Kouame, put the ball in his hands.

Without Tamayo’s gravity, there’s no way Zavier Lucero can clean up messes when the paint is heavily clogged. There will be no open looks for Ricci to attempt six threes a game, or give Cansino driving lanes to work with. Malick Diouf? I’m more comfortable putting it in Tamayo’s hands than a seven-foot iteration of Bo Perasol’s Chibueze Ikeh.

Without his consistency and efficiency of being able to put the basket inside the hoop as well as grab rebounds and carve realty inside, and as one of UP’s valuable floor spacers, the Fighting Maroons would’ve been hard-pressed to have a foothold on the second spot in the standings given how the rest of the field this side of UE has gotten bigger. In the times when Tamayo is not present, UP’s offense looked very shaky and collapsible. At the end of the day, UP’s fortunes will heavily hinge on Carl Tamayo’s shoulders’ ability to carry an offense through a three-minute stretch especially when they are in a rut, as it has happened quite a number of times.

Is it putting too much pressure if I say Tamayo has what it takes to challenge Benjie Paras’ legacy as a Fighting Maroon? Perhaps. 

For many years, UP has been looking for a savior on the hardcourt. Marvin Cruz, Mike Silungan, Mike Gamboa, Migs De Asis, Soc Rivera, the list goes on. They’ve put up with years that supposed stars that failed to pan out or faded into obscurity after one round of elimination games.

However, I believe we haven’t seen the best Tamayo has to offer and we are barely scratching the surface of his potential.

He’s a problem, and people better recognize that now rather than later.

He’s the star and not the accessory.

By Gio Gloria

What makes an MVP? Is it the numbers they produce? The stats that point to their value to the team? Their mere presence? 

The MVP conversation is not so difficult as it is nuanced, more so for UAAP Season 84. Great performances have been coming from all corners, veterans and first-year players alike. Yet even with these standout games, consistency has largely been missing when assessing the overall picture. A good outing today can be followed up by a dud, and the short-term memory of certain basketball fans will lead to flighty takes all over again. 

It is a given, though, considering the two-year layoff and the numerous changes teams went through for various reasons. Nevertheless, 12 games can provide some hints as to who among the five below could (and not necessarily will) be viewed as the league’s best player this season. 

(Stats through 12 games courtesy of Ryan Alba, Stats By Ryan)

Ange Kouame (12.92 PPG, 10.83 RPG, 1.92 BPG, 56.76 FG%, 7.51 BLK%)

Ange Kouame’s numbers may not scream sure-fire MVP, but he certainly carries the most value for the Ateneo Blue Eagles. When the Blue Eagles run their offensive sets, anyone can step up for them so long as Kouame does his part in the play. 

The Kouame-Lazaro connection once again leads to a Lazaro mid-range jumper!

Ateneo 46 UST 21#UAAPBasketball pic.twitter.com/xLNz6gUzsr

— Neal Beltran (@Neal_TheGUIDON) April 21, 2022

Of course, Kouame’s development over three years has seen him round out his game, with those improved aspects certainly adding more wrinkles to Ateneo’s offense. The game-high five assists he finished with in ADMU’s 91-57 demolition of the Adamson Soaring Falcons not only shows his familiarity with Blue Eagles head coach Tab Baldwin’s system, but also points to him being able to understand how he can make the defense pay in other ways. 

Justine Baltazar (13.25 PPG, 10.83 RPG, 3.25 APG, 19.42 AST%) 

Justine Baltazar has always been capable of producing; it’s WHEN he produces that builds or tears down his case. There are games when he thoroughly dominates the competition, and his monster double-double games point to that. However, those games are usually offset by double-digit scoring games that come at the price of sub-par efficiency and unnecessary struggles on the offensive end. 

Many saw Baltazar’s time spent with Gilas under Baldwin as a great move for Philippine basketball and one could not fault the Lasallian community for being excited in his growth in just a short span of time. 

At this point in the season, fans want Baltazar to dominate and it can be done even within the confines of team play (he leads all big men so far in assists per game with 3.25 and dishes out assists at a good rate). Considering how atrocious the DLSU Green Archers’ offense can be, it wouldn’t be a bad idea for him to take over even more. 

Zavier Lucero (13.83 PPG, 8.42 RPG, 1.25 SPG, 1.08 BPG, 57.39 FG%)

Zavier Lucero had a slow start to his UAAP career, but he has picked up his play and reminded the rest of the league why he was a highly sought-after recruit. He’s had his moments as the season progressed, but there was no other game where he shined brighter than against the FEU Tamaraws. 

Despite his solid shooting numbers, consistency seems to be his greatest foe as he usually follows up stellar games with off nights. Playing in a loaded squad like the UP Fighting Maroons has at times allowed them to win despite this but another test looms when they close out the elimination round against a highly sophisticated defense in Ateneo. 

Carl Tamayo (13.42 PPG, 7.75 RPG, 18.17 DRPG%, 13.55 TO%) 

Carl Tamayo’s play has certainly made it hard to believe that he is a rookie. He too spent time with the national team under Baldwin and that has helped him take a leap even during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Tamayo’s big games have usually come when Lucero has a relatively off-night that it’s rare to see them have strong performances together. It would be unfair to say that they eat into each other’s efficiency, but them playing well together would make them a far more dangerous team such that either can be solid inside-outside options. On Tamayo’s part, he just needs to work on his free-throw shooting, as teams could use that to their advantage. 

Jerom Lastimosa (15.67 PPG, 4.50 RPG, 3.50 APG, 1.08 SPG, 49.63 FG%, 36.75 AST%) 

Despite the seven losses in Season 84, the Adamson Soaring Falcons have always been in the thick of things and Jerom Lastimosa has been a major reason for that. After an up-and-down first two years, Lastimosa is the main man for the Falcons and has wasted no time in letting the league know about it. 

Currently UAAP Season 84’s leading scorer at 15.67 points per game, Lastimosa has had to take the biggest shots for the team and live with the results. The heartbreak has been there especially dating back to his days as a rookie, but they’ve sharpened him for times such as when he led Adamson to a win over UP. 

The UAAP Season 84 MVP race remains wide open and as such, a few players have already built their respective cases. How one views the best player in the league for a particular season definitely varies but what defines the “best” is at times more than meets the eye. 

During the weekend, Isko Moreno, Norberto Gonzales, and Ping Lacson had a press conference that dominated discourse on Social Media. The agenda of their press con was simple: show that they would unite in not withdrawing their candidacies for president, and instead, asking the #2 candidate according to the surveys, Leni Robredo, to withdraw instead.

It was an interesting press conference that forced Filipinos to rethink their lessons in Mathematics. It was even more interesting because some UAAP fans started to picture the idea of UP withdrawing this UAAP season so the other teams could beat Ateneo.

So let’s add some color to that picture, shall we? Let’s try to answer whether Unity Minus #2 can beat the Ateneo Blue Eagles. 

What’s the blueprint to beat Ateneo? 

Ever since Coach Tab Baldwin’s taken over head coaching duties for the Blue Eagles, Ateneo’s offense has been all about flow, discipline, and patience. The best way to counter this is by disrupting their attack by putting a ton of pressure and forcing them to make quick decisions in tight situations. This was how S81 FEU and Adamson, and S80 La Salle beat them during their title run.

Of course, you need to put the ball in the basket more times than Ateneo, so bringing a potent offense to the table is key. Limiting Ateneo’s defense will require trying to foul out Angelo Kouame to increase a team’s chances of scoring more. If that won’t work, stretching the floor is your next best bet. 

The Starting Lineup of Unity Minus #2

C – Justine Baltazar, DLSU Green Archers

PF – Michael Malonzo, NU Bulldogs

SF – Xyrus Torres, FEU Tamaraws

SG – Kurt Lojera, DLSU Green Archers

PG – Jerom Lastimosa, Adamson Soaring Falcons 

From the onset, I have to say this: it was extremely difficult to create a potent starting 5 that covered all the bases against the Ateneo Blue Eagles. The number one problem in this exercise was getting a good amount of reliable 3 and D players to include in this fantasy lineup. If there was a player that knew how to shoot, his defense was a tad questionable. For players who could defend and put pressure, they were often too small. Lastly, those who had size often had inconsistent strokes. With that being said, here’s the best five I could come out with.

Justine Baltazar feels like the obvious pick in this exercise. For the record, he is probably the best player in the UAAP not named Angelo Kouame. The challenge with Baltazar was figuring out where to slot him. Would we use him as a power forward, or as a center? I opted to use him as a center to make way for Michael Malonzo, NU’s underrated but very valuable athletic forward.

With those two on board, you get a frontline that has plenty of length. They aren’t supreme shooters by any means, but they stretch the floor well enough to make life hard for Ateneo’s front line. 

Their true value lies in motor. Baltazar is a skilled workhorse who will make life hard for Kouame, while Malonzo has an engine that will tire out even the most conditioned of players. With those two moving relentlessly, you force Ateneo’s frontline to move as well. Eventually, that movement will create some form of space that will allow your lineup to thrive.

Which brings us to the backcourt. Jerom Lastimosa was an obvious choice here, given the leap he’s made this season as a playmaker, creator, and scorer. He is likely a Top 10 UAAP Player right now, with a pro stock that’s rising by the minute. 

Kurt Lojera might be the surprise piece in this lineup, but he’s arguably the most important one. Lojera might just be the best perimeter defender in the league not named Gian Mamuyac. He’s a stock bulldog that hounds opposing offenses, and he has a good enough offensive package to boot. 

The value of these two lies in speed, creativity, and just like your frontcourt, a lot of motor. Lastimosa’s ability to create off the dribble will be key in keeping this offense afloat, while Lojera’s IQ and effort on defense is needed to stifle Ateneo’s guards.

Lastly, we have the piece who will tie both parties together; Xyrus Torres. It was tough deciding on this final position, because you could have went with a faster player or a bigger one at the three spot. But we opted with Torres, because aside from his shooting which can tie a lot of the loose ends, his defense is solid enough to compliment the guards and bigs. Torres, my friends, is going to be a pro. A very good one. And he fits in very well in this fantasy lineup of ours. 

The Key Bench Pieces of Unity Minus #2

C – Emman Ojuola, FEU Tamaraws 

PG – LJay Gonzales, FEU Tamaraws

SF – John Lloyd Clemente, NU Bulldogs

Of course, you can’t win without a solid bench, and we went with these three key pieces. To balance the motor of your starting lineup, we went with one large body for added big man depth, a speedy creator as a reliable backup to Jerom, and a large wing who can thrive with the right pieces.

Emman Ojuola was admittedly a no-brainer to add to this lineup. His exclusion from the starting lineup was because of strategy (motor, plenty of speed) rather than his competence as a player. Speed can only do so much and you need some heft to back that up. Enter Ojuola.

LJay Gonzales also should have been a no-brainer, but Lastimosa got the nod over him due to more consistent creation in the halfcourt. But you couldn’t have chosen a better back-up point guard. LJay has the strength and speed to make life hard for the Ateneo Blue Eagles.

John Lloyd Clemente was a tricky player to consider in this exercise. He could have gotten the nod over Torres, but his shooting has been too inconsistent. On the other hand, his upside and size are too valuable, so leaving him off the lineup completely felt criminal. A bench role seems fair enough. If he heats up, you’re in for a very fun night. 

The Coach of Unity Minus #2

Coach Jeff Napa, NU Bulldogs

This was the easiest choice to make, outside of Justine Baltazar’s inclusion. Coach Jeff Napa has been the UAAP’s Coach of the Year (for those not named Tab Baldwin), and a lot of that has to do with his principles as a basketball coach.

Play hard. Keep things simple. Play together. 

Those may sound like very basic principles, but he gets his players to execute and embody those to a tee, and that deserves a lot of praise. He’s a floor-raising coach who has also proven capable of handling talented rosters (at least in the Juniors Division). Plus, his system that puts a premium on pressure defense and forcing turnovers is perfect for the game plan needed to beat the Blue Eagles.

Can Unity Minus #2 beat the Ateneo Blue Eagles? 

This will probably be a close game, given the amount of talent Unity Minus #2 has. But the fact of the matter is, to beat the Blue Eagles with this lineup, you will need to play the closest thing you can get to a perfect game. That’s quite a feat, so I wouldn’t bet on this roster to slay the Blue Eagle machine. 

The biggest problem is size in the wing position. While Xyrus Torres and JLC are capable defenders, they lack the strength to capably defend Dave Ildefonso. Plus, they’d need to contend with 6-foot-5 Chris Koon in spurts. 

And of course, the Angelo Kouame problem. He’s the best player in the UAAP for a reason, and there’s reason to believe that he can withstand the pressure of Baltazar and Malonzo. Ojuola can try to use his size, but Ange is too fast for Emman to handle in the post. 

Should we instead unite with UP at the helm to beat Ateneo? 

Well, it’s the obvious choice. While it isn’t a 100% full-proof plan to beat Ateneo, you need to take your chances by maximizing the second-best team in the league. Zavier Lucero and CJ Cansino are players any team would want thanks to their versatility, while Carl Tamayo is a centerpiece any coach would dream of having. With UP, ABL.

Angat

Basketball

Lahat

But then again, we’re talking about Ateneo here, a proven commodity in college basketball, with a track record that you cannot question. I could continue to write 203 billion words on combinations to beat their squad while requesting for recounts when need be, but even that may not be enough.

Do I have your attention now?

If we were under normal circumstances, we’d already be done talking about CJ Cansino, the UST Growling Tigers, and the UAAP in general. News flows quickly. All it takes is a commitment from a star player to slow down a news cycle in sports.

CJ Cansino is going to the UP Fighting Maroons. We should be good already, right? All’s well that ends well. UP gets their new star, while UST now tries to move on from losing their captain. Let’s call it a day.

But that could not be farther from the truth.

Cansino’s commitment to UP was the only the first domino to fall. There’s many more to talk about and with a single tweet, we were witness to a can of worms opening before our very eyes.

LOOK: Screenshots of the alleged conversations of the UST Tigers about their experiences in the 'Sorsogon bubble'

Ex-Tiger CJ Cansino shared the screenshots on his twitter account earlier today but has since deleted the thread | @StarSportsHub @PhilstarNews pic.twitter.com/tljPHSxOmT

— Luisa Morales (@mluisamorales_) August 26, 2020

Earlier this afternoon, CJ Cansino tweeted a series of screenshots about UST’s controversial Bicol Bubble. These were the main points we got out of the messages posted by Cansino:

• There were issues about food being served to the players
• Players were getting sick inside the bubble
• There was poor signal in the bubble
• Players were home sick
• Players were unhappy

Reactions to the thread by Cansino were mixed. Of course, Aldin Ayo was accused as a dictator by a lot of fans. However, there were also some athletes accusing CJ of being papansin. Why the need to even tweet these things? Doesn’t Cansino realize that these revelations won’t even affect him anymore since he’s transferred out of the Growling Tigers?

The now-deleted thread by Cansino was a pipe bomb. A pipe bomb does not care about what other people may think. A pipe bomb will hit A LOT of people, more than you’d even expect. Is it controversial? Absolutely. Is the person delivering the pipe bomb polarizing? There’s no doubt about that.
But a pipe bomb is delivered with good intentions. It is a result of pent up rage from a passionate individual who recognizes that something needs to be changed with how things are being done in the present. The present we’re in? A collegiate team holding questionable bubbles in the middle of a pandemic.

The easy way out of addressing this issue is to say, “Just don’t hold bubbles! Aldin Ayo is an evil person!” However, reducing the issue to the fault of one person would be an insult to the pipe bomb that was delivered. Pipe bombs are never shallow. They are always meant to expose the deeper meaning of certain issues. Let’s try to answer question number one: Why did Aldin Ayo even hold a bubble in the first place?

The answer: To win. To gain a competitive advantage. Even then, the questions will continue to pour.

Why the need to win in the middle of a pandemic?
What has conditioned coaches to prioritize winning over their players?

Here’s the dirty little secret people have tried to hide regarding amateur hoops in the country: College basketball in the Philippines is INCREDIBLY commercialized. In a word, money. Money, as this bubble has shown us, causes people to make questionable decisions that are immoral and medically dangerous.

But people will argue, money! You don’t even need to explain it in length. Money is language that is universal. It is something people will understand.

What Aldin Ayo and the UST Growling Tigers management did was wrong. Holding a training bubble involving STUDENTS, in the middle of a pandemic, mind you, is irresponsible. He deserves to be sanctioned accordingly because of his actions.

But the problem doesn’t end with Ayo alone. His actions are a result of a system that has conditioned everyone, from the fans and even the decision-makers of teams, to treat players as commodities. This shouldn’t be the case. They’re students. The UAAP as a league should be a platform for these athletes to develop, in the hopes of pursuing a professional career in the future.

Even then, the questions will continue to pour.

Why shouldn’t players and coaches in collegiate leagues be compensated for their work?

Why not talk about recruitment practices? There are so many schools who benefit from that!

CJ Cansino delivered a pipe bomb. A can of worms was opened. There is a flawed system that has negatively affected our athletes, the ones who are supposed to be the primary beneficiaries of the UAAP. Something must be done. This issue must have your attention now.