FAR Eastern University has made it clear that it is going all-in on its youth revolution.
With the core made up of Veejay Pre, Janrey Pasaol, and Jedric Daa, the Tamaraws were clear on their intent to bank on their future through the pipeline it built from the high school level.
But so far this UAAP Season 87, another figure has emerged as a consistent contributor for the Morayta crew: their Gambian reinforcement Mo Konateh.
Through five games, the 6-foot-10 center has been a revelation, leading the league with his 16.8 rebounds and 2.2 blocks, to go with 9.0 points, 1.4 steals, and 1.0 assists.
Konateh even grabbed a whopping 25 rebounds alongside 12 points and four blocks on Wednesday against a La Salle team which had Kevin Quiambao, Michael Phillips, and Henry Agunnane in its frontline.
That rebounding output is the most in the league since Phillips grabbed 26 three seasons back.
But for the 20-year-old slotman, it’s all about putting in the work.
“We have the desire,” said Konateh. “We wanted to win this game. I know we can be better. We have a young team and we have a good coach, so we’ll just have to give our 100-percent. We’ll bounce back next game.”
Though FEU has yet to taste a win this season, Konateh remains defiant. To him, the Tamaraws have all the materials to keep up and even pull off some upsets just like how they were able to stay toe-to-toe with the defending champions.
“I know and I believe that we can beat any team. We might not make it this year, but next year. We’ll always do our best,” he said.
“We know we are young, but we can make it. Coach Sean [Chambers] tries to give us everything we need. We just have to believe in ourselves and we’ll keep on working hard.”
FEU-ture is bright
This, however, isn’t news to Chambers, who has long been raving about Konateh.
“Remember, he’s also a freshman,” the first-year coach said. “Mo is a dynamite. I really think Mo is one of the most talented kids out here. He’s so quiet, he’s so shy, but he’s such a tremendous worker and he’s such a high IQ player. We really love his development.”
Seeing Konateh’s growth together with his fellow rookies Pre, Pasaol, Daa, and Fil-Japanese shooter Adam Nakai only brings a big smile to the face of Chambers.
Times may be hard now, but give it a little bit more seasoning and there’s no doubt that bright days are still ahead for the green-and-gold.
“I don’t want to look too forward to the future, but we’re gonna be a problem moving forward,” beamed Chambers. “I think now everybody’s understanding that when you have such a young group of guys, it is a process. At the end of the day, they’re starting to grow, get more comfortable, starting to see the game more, and we’re eventually we’re gonna be a problem for everybody in this league.”
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