THUS far in UAAP Season 88, the University of the Philippines is looking like a shell of itself, but none more so than their newly-activated point guard.
Rey Remogat’s potent play hasn’t followed him to the Fighting Maroons just yet - just as, unfortunately, the losing he experienced back in UE did.
To open its title defense, State U gave the host fans something to cheer for, as University of Santo Tomas had them by their throats for the first blowout of the season, 87-67.
Following that, coach Nash Racela and Adamson made amends for their opening day collapse against La Salle with a 62-59 win over the maroon-and-green, claimed by none other than UP Integrated School product Ray Allen Torres who shot the game-winning triple.
READ: Adamson hero Ray Allen Torres was supposed to go to UP - until he didn't
Back in his second and last year as a Red Warrior, he averaged 16.5 points, 7.9 assists, 6.4 rebounds, and 2.0 steals, while entering the top five in assists, steals, and scoring en route to a Mythical Team selection.
This season, the Cavite native has mustered only 2.5 points, 2.0 assists, and 1.0 rebounds on 15.65-percent shooting.
A small sample size for sure, but equally concerning considering UP’s winless campaign so far.
Of course, this isn’t the first time that Remogat couldn’t buy a basket with the maroon-and-green.
Back in the Playtime Cares Filoil EcoOil Preseason Cup, bad shooting nights hounded Remogat throughout, with the Fighting Maroons only managing to stay afloat thanks to veterans like Gerry Abadiano, Terrence Fortea, and Gani Stevens.
In the end, Remogat found his touch, with his shining moment coming in the semifinals, where he dropped 14 points to put away the Green Archers, highlighted by one clutch three-pointer after another.
To put the icing on the cake, he and his teammates then claimed the first-ever ECJ Perpetual Trophy, awarded to three-peat winners of the preseason tourney.
UP's unbecoming start
Remogat’s slump-aside, all eyes on the Fighting Maroons certainly have worried looks at the moment, as the Goldwin Monteverde-led squad is one loss away from tying their worst start since Season 79.
With State U no longer having the luxury of talents like JD Cagulangan, Quentin Millora-Brown, and Francis Lopez, the trade-off of the subtractions to the holdovers and new faces is looking like an uneven one.
Their frontcourt problems manifested in the worst way possible against the Growling Tigers, as Collins Akowe made all of Gani Stevens, Francis Nnoruka, and Sean Alter look like the rookies.
Meanwhile, only three Fighting Maroons scored off the bench in their second game, which wound up as the third-lowest scoring performance this season.
While it is true that defending the crown is never easy, this is more than worrying for the annually excellent UP.
Everyone anticipated it to be the Fighting Maroons against the world, and right now, the world has them down. For how long, however?
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