SHOULD University of Santo Tomas pound the alarms with this third straight loss?
Forthsky Padrigao doesn’t think so.
Though he acknowledges that the race to the Final Four of the UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball tournament is getting a lot tighter, he has the utmost trust that the Growling Tigers will still make it.
So much so that frustrations are the least of the team’s concerns despite slipping to a 4-6 win-loss card.
“Wala sa aming frustrated. We acknowledge na yung mga ganitong experience, talagang learnings pa rin para sa amin,” the lead guard said after UST’s painful 67-64 home defeat to Ateneo on Saturday.
READ: Ateneo gets win run going, while also sending UST to third loss in a row
“Kailan lang ba kami naka-experience ng mga ganitong sitwasyon? And nakikita ko naman na yung team namin, nag-eeffort talaga at tinitignan namin kung ano yung pwede pang matutunan each game. It’s just that in this game, talo kami. Next game na lang.”
What Padrigao woudn’t deny was this was a game that the black-and-gold badly had to earn.
“We really needed this win, but then, hindi namin nakuha,” the 5-foot-10 playmaker said, as the Growling Tigers gravely missed the services of Malian center Mo Tounkara who was serving a one-game suspension.
READ: No Mo Tounkara for UST as it defends home court vs Ateneo
“Trinabaho din naman ng teammates ko kanina, lahat naman kami, nag-ambag-ambag, but I think our efforts weren’t enough. Ateneo played well, too, so gotta credit them by how they played.”
Part of the process for UST
UST actually had its chances, but squandered both in the clutch.
With Padrigao inbounding, his pass to Nic Cabanero was swiped by Sean Quitevis who wasted no time coasting to the layup that made it a 66-62 Blue Eagle lead with 11.7 seconds left.
The Growling Tigers also had an opportunity to force overtime after Ian Espinosa could only muster a split with 5.5 ticks remaining, but Chris Koon stripped Christian Manaytay of the ball as time expired.
“Talagang makukuha namin yun 'pag na-experience namin yung mga bagay na yun. Two straight games na, wala pa rin kaming nagawa on that end of the floor,” reflected Padrigao.
Nonetheless, Padrigao preached patience, as he sees these setbacks as part of the learning curve for the Espana crew.
“Natututo pa din naman yung team namin and hindi naman yan buo na agad,” he said, while at the same time, emphasizing the heightened sense of urgency for UST’s next four games.
“It’s not an excuse, but then kailangan na namin yung next four games namin and sana yung mga endgame situations from our past two games, may ma-learn kami doon and madala sa upcoming games namin.”
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