SEAN Chambers still vividly recalls his first encounters with Pido Jarencio back in their playing days.
On opposing sides of a heated rivalry between Alaska and Ginebra in the 1990s, physicality was always expected - if not encouraged - as the two sides refused to give each other any inch.
Chambers, the resident import for the Milkmen and now-Far Eastern University shot-caller, remembers the hits like it was yesterday, so much so that he feels Jarencio still owes him for all the bumps and bruises he took.
"If Pido can put on a UST jersey and I can wear FEU, I will foul him hard for the times that he fouled me back in the '90s,” he said with a chuckle. "I owe him most definitely. I'm still mad at Pido and he knows it, too."
Told of the supposed grudge, Jarencio couldn’t help but laugh it off, saying that back then, he was just following instructions from the legendary Robert Jaworski
“Duty foul lang,” laughed the now-University of Santo Tomas head coach.
On Saturday, the two mentors find themselves on opposing ends anew, as the Tamaraws and the Growling Tigers close out their first round assignments in the UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball tournament at Mall of Asia Arena.
FEU is coming off a breakthrough 66-65 overtime win over Ateneo last Sunday which rewarded Chambers his first UAAP win behind the heroics of Jorick Bautista.
READ: Sean Chambers hopes fighting spirit rubs off on young FEU side
But as sweet of the feeling was for the American mentor to end the Tamaraws' five-game slump, he urged his wards to remain hungry, saying, “We’re happy to get the win, but the process still continues. We’re still a young team, so we just have to fight for every possession and show that we can hang with the best of them.”
UST, on the other hand, is looking to rebound after tough assignments against La Salle and the University of the Philippines. That stretch of back-to-back losses relegated the Growling Tigers’ standing to an even 3-3.
Jarencio, however, is unperturbed, sticking with the positives including Forthsky Padrigao finally getting his groove on offense.
READ: UST fails acid test vs La Salle, but Acido, Mahmood give more reason for hope
“At least, nasubukan ng mga bata kung ano yung kailangan naming gawin, kung gaano pa kami kalayo, at ano pa ang dapat ayusin para makasabay doon sa top two,” he said.
Sadly for Chambers, his request for a “coaches’ league” will have to take a back seat for the meantime in favor of the current players to strut their stuff in the 4:30 p.m. game.
Ateneo, National U seek second win
Meanwhile, Ateneo and National University aim to end the first round on a high as they cross each others’ paths at 6:30 p.m.
It hasn’t been the campaign the Bulldogs expected, as they're in the midst of a four-game losing skid and trotting a 1-5 record. But a victory would definitely alleviate some of the pain, one that Jake Figueroa and Steve Nash Enriquez are determined to bring to coach Jeff Napa.
For Ateneo, Shawn Tuano and Josh Lazaro have been revelations for the Blue Eagles, as they hope to end this dry spell in Katipunan and shake off the effects of this 1-5 campaign - easily their worst start under the guidance of coach Tab Baldwin.
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