ONE'S heart was on one's sleeve on Saturday, as University of the East moved ever-so-closer to breaking its 15-year UAAP Final Four drought.
With six wins in nine games, the Red Warriors find themselves well within the top four at the No. 3 spot.
READ: UE tightens grip on third seed after trumping NU
With that, the red-and-white's fire and desire were on full display, especially at one point in its 74-58 triumph over skidding National University - even among themselves.
All’s well that ends well
At the 3:22 mark of the second quarter, UE tower Precious Momowei and gunner John Abate had an altercation in the middle of the court for all of the Mall of Asia Arena to see.
Also worth noting, though, is Abate commited a pair of turnovers prior to the said altercation.
In an attempt to shake the cobwebs off of his teammate, Momowei went on a rather emotional outburst that prompted an exchange of sweet nothings that caught the rest of the Red Warriors by surprise.
But for the 6-foot-9 Nigerian big, there’s no love lost whatsoever.
“I’m not, what do you call it, like their captain, but everyone has to lead, you know. We all want to win, so it’s just me trying to motivate them and get everyone on the same page,” Momowei shared to SPIN.ph.
“We are all equal at the end of the day. This is a team sport, so this is just us coming together as one, as we all have the same goal.”
And as UE's kuya on and off the court, Momowei only wants the best for Abate even if they’ve been the type of teammates to have had more than a few scraps this season.
“John is great, you know? We always argue all the time, but I want the best for him. I'm sure he also wants the best for me," he said.
“I don't think it's anything serious. I'm just trying to bring him up and all that.”
Iron sharpens iron
For his part, Abate stated he remains on the same page as Momowei in the aftermath of a rather quick family feud.
As he put it, “That's my brother. We're gonna fight. That's what siblings do. We're two competitive people, two intense people, and we just ultimately want to win.”
“At first, we had a little stumble. I turned over the ball in the next possession. I got subbed out. But in the third quarter, we came back. He passed it out to me. I had a big three.
“He made a big play. I made a big play. And then, you know, we made up for it.”
For the on-the-rise Red Warriors who seek to build a competitive unit strong enough for a deep Final Four run, holding each other accountable is a must.
“If you have someone that's holding you accountable, you know, it's iron sharpens iron.”
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
