AFTER missing his first three in the endgame, Xyrus Torres never expected the leather to be back on his hands as he knew that when push comes to shove, Far Eastern University will always go to either L-Jay Gonzales and RJ Abarrientos.
"Sa totoo lang, hindi [ko] na [inaasahan na babalik sa akin yung bola]. Yung mga time na ganoon, kila L-Jay at RJ yun," he said. "Di ko rin expected yung shot na yun."
But with time trickling down and the Tamaraws staring at a 57-56 deficit, Gonzales made his move and found an open Torres anew at the right corner who went up for another three and this time found the bottom of the net.
"Binigay lang nila ang trust nila sa akin. Buti na lang nakita ako ni L-Jay at buti na lang din pumasok yung tira ko," he said.
Torres' trey with 2.2 seconds to spare turned out to be the game-winning bucket as FEU hacked out the 59-57 win over National University on Thursday.
It's a much needed win for the Tamaraws which seemingly revived their Final Four hopes after a very tumultuous campaign this UAAP Season 84 as they tied the Bulldogs at fourth place at 4-6.
Xyrus Torres is given second attempt in the endgame and delivers for FEU.
"Sabi nga ni coach, nag-trust lang kami sa isa't isa at tinrust ako ni L-Jay at yung coaches nag-trust din sa akin. Yun lang lagi kong sinasabi sa kanila, once nag-penetrate sila libre lang ako. Pag libre ako, ready lang ako lagi," said Torres, who came through for the Tamaraws with a game-high 16 points on 4-of-11 shooting from deep.
Gonzales also noted that when he got that pivotal offensive board, playing the role of the hero never crossed his mind as all he wanted was to get the best shot possible for the Morayta crew.
"Wala sa isip ko yun. Yung offensive rebound, hinabol ko lang yung bola and doon ako napaisip. Nakita ko si Xyrus sa corner, pinasa ko na lang sa kanya at ayun na-shoot niya," said the lead guard, who had a forgettable 2-of-7 clip in the game yet still delivered seven points, eight boards, five assists, and two steals.
"Yung trust na sinasabi ni coach Olsen, yun nga yung nangyari."
Rightfully so, Racela is just happy with this performance, one that he's adamant in telling his players of being a test of the team's character.
"Even if nagstruggle si L-Jay and RJ, it shows that this team is more than just those two players," he said.
"The guys showed their character in this game, they never gave up, we trusted each other, and like I said, yung mga gantong sitwasyon, pwede nang magkanya-kanya sila sa skill na meron si L-Jay at sa skill na meron si RJ pero hindi eh. We trusted each other, we defended in the second half, we limited our turnovers and yun."
Ending this three-game skid for FEU, Racela is just keeping his fingers crossed that this would indeed be the start of the team turning a new leaf in hopes of making a late run to the Final Four.
"That's what we're hoping for. Lahat ng teams ang initial goal is to make it to the Final Four and that remains our goal," he said.
"For the most part, nandoon kami sa bottom four. This is the first time na nag-tie kami sa top four. So we're hoping that this will be the turning point of our season. Basta gamitin lang namin itong panalong ito for us to be more consistent. Madami kaming pinagdaanan pero makakatulong itong panalong ito for our confidence."
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