DIDAT Hanapi came out of nowhere to steal the show for Adamson in its tough first loss against National University on Saturday.
But in the first half of the Soaring Falcons' game against University of the East, the only action the former Baby Falcon saw was the bench.
It's a baffling move in the surface for coach Nash Racela, yet one that he easily justified.
And it's all because of one thing: "Ice cream," the mentor said.
Nash Racela on 'ice cream' issue
It turns out, that sweet treat was just too hard to resist for Hanapi and four other players that led to their first-half benching.
Racela furthered: "It's a very simple thing. Yesterday was the birthday of our athletic director Fr. Aldrin Suan and he sent food for dinner na may kasamang cake at ice cream. The coaches reminded that we have a game early in the next day and it would be better not to eat ice cream, but five of our guys still did get a scoop or two."
Hanapi was one of those who gave in to the temptation alongside Mario Barasi, Tricky Peromingan, Joseph Fuentebella, and Ivan Maata -- a group that Racela affectionately regarded as the "Ice Cream Five."
Petty as it may seem, it's Racela's way of instilling discipline to these players as he looks to build this young Adamson team from scratch.
"It's partly discipline. We're teaching them something. Mababaw na bagay, pero lima sila na we didn't use in the first half and it's because of a simple ice cream," he said.
Lucky for them, the Soaring Falcons hardly needed their help as they cruised to an 82-66 win over the Red Warriors.
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