BY John Miles Arcenal
BEHIND Ray Allen Torres’ clutch triple in the dying seconds, Adamson escaped with a hard-fought 62-59 victory vs. UAAP Season 88 defending champion University of the Philippines on Wednesday.
READ: Ray Allen Torres, Adamson send UP to first 0-2 start since 2016
For head coach Nash Racela, the win was a testament to the Soaring Falcons' commitment to defense, a foundation he insists is their only way to compete in a league filled with supposedly more talented rosters.
“You know that our talent compared to most of them, mas mababa. Hindi ko naman ibinababa yung mga players ko, but I guess that’s just the reality,” he admitted.
“We have to accept that and the only way for us to be able to compete in this league is really to play defense, play as a team, rely on each other, and not too much on our individual skill. The team should embrace that, so hopefully every game ganyan ang ipakita namin.”
Racela's wards had been haunted by late-game struggles in recent seasons, often faltering in crunch time, with the most recent being their opening game against La Salle where they just fell short, 58-60.
Up against the reigning titlists, however, the savvy shot-caller saw a different level of resilience from Adamson
“Yung resilience ng team, nag-stand out. Dati-rati bumibigay na lang kami sa huli,” he said.
“Against La Salle, we didn’t give in, but the talent of Jacob Cortez was just too much. Today, hindi bumigay, lumaban lang.”
It takes all of Adamson
Even better, despite Torres' heroics, it wasn’t just a one-man show for the Soaring Falcons, as Racela highlighted how well his squad distributed the load in terms of scoring.
“The more distributed the scoring, the better, it means lahat, kailangan bantayan, and that’s what we preach,” he noted, as only two players were in double-digits with 10 apiece, but two more each had eight, while three also has six apiece.
“Last game, Cedrick [Manzano] lang. Today, everybody contributed in their own way, and that’s what made the difference.”
More than just a single win, the result provided Adamson with a much-needed confidence-boost in a tough early schedule that had it face last year’s finalists then resurgent Ateneo in its first three assignments.
“Mahihirap kalaban La Salle at UP sa umpisa. Kung natalo kami ulit, then Ateneo pa next, baka 0-3 agad kami,” their mentor stressed.
“Kaya we wanted this win badly, para naman may konting space.”
Mission accomplished, then, for Racela's surprising Falcons.
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