‘WELCOME to NCAA Season 101.’
That was Letran coach Allen Ricardo’s first words to his team in the dugout as the Knights saw themselves on the wrong end of an upset against a young and feistery JRU Heavy Bombers squad, 73-69, last Friday at the Playtime Filoil Center in San Juan.
Expected to be one of the favorites to come out of Group B – or the so-called ‘Group of Death’ – the Knights had themselves an early wake-up call after the Heavy Bombers pulled away in the middle quarters before having answers to every Letran rally in the end game.
READ: Young JRU upsets fully loaded Letran to open NCAA Season 101
But Ricardo is taking that loss in stride, noting how the team remains committed to playing for one another even after that shock loss while also reminding them that nothing will ever come easy despite having a truly stacked squad.
“We’ll just take it one game at a time, pinakamahirap kunin yung unang panalo, but I’m optimistic. Kilala ko naman yung mga bata na’to, they will bounce back,” he told Spin.ph.
“Despite this loss, the coaches and the players are on the same page. We know how to handle this kind of loss, wala namang kaguluhan sa dugout. That’s life, sometimes you win, sometimes you lose,” he added.
“I guess the most important thing is us, the relationship between me and the players, and the coaches, no matter what happens, ganun talaga basketball e umiikot lang yan. You have to feel the pain para mas tumibay ka pa sa susunod na pagsubok on and off the court.”
But that doesn’t mean that he’s taking an easy approach to his players.
The second-year mentor rued his squad’s impatience on offense and lack of discipline on the defensive end as there were times in the crucial fourth quarter where they gave away easy baskets when his boys got overeager in forcing steals.
It also didn’t help that the Knights missed crucial free throws when they were making a rally late – with Titing Manalili and Kevin Santos both splitting their all-important free throws which would’ve kept the game at a single possession.
“Na-execute naman nila yung kailangan nila ma-execute pero nagkaron lang ng immaturity and impatience especially on the offensive end,” he said.
“Medyo yung decision making namin pag dating sa defense, crucial din. May point dun na hindi naman dapat gamble-in, ginamble ng player pero it happens. I guess mahaba pa naman ito, with the new format.”
The good news for Ricardo and the Knights is that they’ll have the chance to redeem themselves quickly as they turn their attention to archrival and another Group B powerhouse in San Beda on Sunday.
The loss seemed to have lit a fire in the boys of Ricardo. Now it’s all about putting it to good use against a confident Red Lions side in their first meeting.
“We move forward from this game and then of course, we’ll have a one day preparation for Sunday’s game,” Ricardo said.
“From there nakita ko naman sa kanila kanina nung natalo kami medyo nagkaron na sila ng sense of urgency. I want to see it on Sunday.”
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
