ALEX Diakhite wasn't supposed to play in University of the East's 89-88 victory over La Salle on Saturday.
After all, he hasn't gotten the clearance from the doctors to be back on the court.
The Senegalese big man, though, wanted to be with his teammates pronto despite just recovering from a dengue and dehydration scare.
"I wanted to play today. I wanted to show to my teammates that I care," he said.
UE active consultant Lawrence Chongson bared that Diakhite was only discharged from the UERM Memorial Medical Center on Saturday noon and wanted to join the team at Mall of Asia Arena.
"Tinanggal yung dextrose niya mga 12:30 p.m., so we had to rush him to the dorm and get dressed. He got here late also," the mentor said, with the 21-year-old bruiser arriving at halftime.
"He was not supposed to play. Actually, hindi pa nga siya gusto palaruin ng doktor pero sinubukan ko lang siya gamitin to boost our morale and in case of emergency lang."
Diakhite would check in with a minute left in the third quarter, playing for just two minutes and 49 seconds.
Although he went scoreless in that short stint, the 6-foot-9 slotman was happy to be part of this triumph as the Red Warriors snapped their three-game losing skid.
And Diakhite vows to be back in 100-percent for UE's next game against University of the Philippines, seeking back-to-back wins when it returns to the court on Saturday at Ynares Center in Antipolo.
"I hope we get more wins. It was a big three from Rey (Suerte), so we hope we get more," he said.
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.
