EVEN Ken Tuffin was surprised with how everything unfolded in Davao three years ago.
Usually with a mild demeanor, the Fil-Kiwi found himself at the center of the heated duel between Far Eastern University and La Salle during the 2017 Kadayawan Cup.
"I think we hadn't beaten La Salle in 2016 and in early preseason games in Filoils so there was very much a point to be proven from our end that we could compete with the champs and potentially beat them," he said.
Tuffin wasn't just at the center -- he was actually one of the sparks as his exchange with Kib Montalbo seemingly triggered the melee between the two sides.
"That was my first time also to be in an in-game fight," he said.
Tuffin basically corroborated the statements made by Montalbo and Andrei Caracut in the Crossover Podcast of Cedelf Tupas, agreeing that it's quite surprising that those who were usually tame were the ones to lose their cool.
"I remember it was a physical game and I was running down the middle of the floor trying to get a fastbreak opportunity and I run my lane and I ran into Kib and that’s how it all kind of started," he shared.
"I was holding Ricci (Rivero) back I think and I got shoved by someone who ran on the court and after that I got punched on my cheek bone or in my left ear and I couldn’t hear anything out of my left ear."
Unlike some of his fellow Tamaraws who joined in the fracas, though, Tuffin chose to move away from the fight, fearing for longterm repercussions from the incident.
"I walked away thinking something might be seriously wrong with my hearing, but thankfully it was all okay," he said.
Tension-filled as their affairs were, Tuffin admitted that he learned his lessons from that ugly brawl, so much so that he holds a higher degree of respect for Montalbo after that incident.
"I believe there’s definitely a mutual respect there. I’ve told Kib that I like him and the way he plays the game and of course, the battles we’ve had over the years," he said.
"I’ve actually learned a lot from him, especially in terms on leadership when he was in his final year at La Salle. When they beat us that year in the first round, I think he was the driving force in that; just the desire to win from him reflected on to his teammates and everyone could see it."
And as unfortunate as that game devolved into chaos, Tuffin acknowledges that nothing could really stop the games between FEU and La Salle to be as intense as they are given that over the years, the two schools have also developed their own rivalry.
"FEU and La Salle will always be a rivalry, I think. Obviously it's not as big as Ateneo and La Salle but a rivalry nonetheless," he said. "When you have certain individuals that are competitive, that in turn makes your team competitive. And at FEU there’s no shortage of that. So we will always compete and won’t back down."
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