NIC Cabanero once again found himself at the wrong end of a loss to Adamson.
So frustrating was University of Santo Tomas’ 69-56 defeat for the Espana top gun that he couldn’t help but wonder if there’s some kind of wizardry involved whenever the two teams meet.
“Cursed ata,” he sighed during an interview with SPIN.ph post-game.
Cabanero and the Growling Tigers haven’t won against the Soaring Falcons since the first round of UAAP Season 85.
Since then, UST choked a 19-point lead in their second round meeting that year before getting swept in their matchups a season later.
And on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena, that was the case again as Adamson shot 48-percent in the second half to recover from a poor start and condemn the Growling Tigers to their first defeat in Season 87.
READ: Adamson silences UST's growling start to UAAP Season 87
“It’s for them talaga,” rued Cabanero. “Whatever shots they’re taking, napapasok nila eh. Kahit anong ibato nila, pumapasok. Para sa kanila talaga yung game.”
All in all, the fourth-year wing now only has two wins under his belt after seven meetings against the Soaring Falcons.
Bounce back ability
Still, UST coach Pido Jarencio doesn’t want to put too much weight on this defeat, though he called out what he felt was a lackadaisical showing for his wards.
“Ang tamlay natin ngayon,” the outspoken mentor said. “A loss is a loss. Basta kami, charge to experience lang. Bawi kami sa susunod.”
Echoing his coach’s words, the Cabanero also said that the Growling Tigers are taking this loss on the chin and are just focusing on what they can gain moving forward.
“I think we have we need to absorb this loss and we need to learn from it, what we need to improve on,” he said. “I know na it's a wake up call for us. Parang malayo pa sa katotohanan lahat eh. It doesn’t mean na we already have two wins, relax na kami.”
At the same time, the 6-foot-3 forward isn’t letting this loss dim UST’s shine, saying, “I think this loss will make us more hungry.”
“We have three games pa lang, may 11 games to go pa. We’re just gonna focus one game at a time and we’re just gonna do our best.”
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