NOW comes the hard part for defending champion University of the Philippines.
Although his charges showed the way after the first round of the 85th UAAP basketball tournament with a 6-1 mark, Fighting Maroons coach Goldwin Monteverde is far from satisfied.
“Sa amin, every time na maglalaro kami, we will be giving our best, at the same time, kumabaga importante for us whatever ma-meet namin sila on the floor during that game,” Monteverde said. “We will face the challenge and try to overcome it as a team.
“Of course, we always really try hard to improve more from the first round. So, hopefully, mas in terms of team, team maglaro,” he added.
UP begins its second-round drive against National University on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Monteverde maintained the Katipunan-based crew still has a lot of improvement in its bid for a second straight crown.
“Actually, kung kahit titingnan mo noong pre-season pa lang, lahat naman ng teams were able to improve. Kami naman ever since before, lahat ng team we respect, lahat ng team na makakalaban namin,” Monteverde said. “So, we really prepare for every team. Importante lang as I’ve said dapat kami sa sarili namin, improve lang namin, and tuloy-tuloy din.”
Whether the Maroons win via runaway fashions or eke out close triumphs does not matter, according to Monteverde.
“Sometimes, hindi naman sa lead iyong pinagbabasehan namin. It’s more of iyong what we brought noong game, kung ano ba kailangan namin i-improve. So, we’ve always talked about working hard for a win,” he said.
“Sinasabi ko nga it takes only one point to win a game. But importante whether it’s a big (lead) or not, kung ano makita namin what to improve on doon kami mag-concentrate.”
