UE Red Warriors’ coach Jack Santiago during a UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball game against UP Fighting Maroons. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines — University of the East coach Jack Santiago believes pressure got the higher of his wards as they ended the elimination round with five straight losses within the UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball tournament.
UE, led by Precious Momowei and Jack Cruz-Dumont, couldn’t capitalize on its strong start and did not outright secure the last Final 4 berth with a 77-67 loss to the No.2 seed University of the Philippines on Wednesday at FilOil EcoOil Centre in San Juan City.
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“We desired to win yung game so lets say that we entered Final 4 because we won, not because we simply waited for the outcomes of the opposite games on Saturday. Hopefully, we might be ready,” said Santiago.
READ: Warriors have hard or longer solution to make UAAP Final 4
The Red Warriors, though, are assured of a playoff for the last Final 4 ticket with a 6-8 elimination round finish and their fate depends upon the ultimate elimination game of the season between Adamson Falcons (5-8) and also-ran Ateneo Blue Eagles (4-9) on Saturday.
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If Ateneo beats Adamson, the Red Warriors advance to the post-elimination round for the primary time since 2009. If Adamson wins, the Falcons and Red Warriors clash in a knockout game for the suitable to face the highest seed and twice-to-beat La Salle within the Final 4.
John Abate, one in every of the UE Red Warriors’ top guys, during a UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball game. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
From starting the season with a 5-2 first-round record to falling right into a dangerous slump, Santiago admitted that the pressure got the young Red Warriors side.
“I don’t see any problems inside the team. The connection between the players and the coaches is nice. Perhaps it’s since the players are experiencing this sort of situation for the primary time. Most of them are still young, and we only have a number of veterans. Going into the second round, I believe they felt the pressure, especially since we’ve been losing,” said the UE coach.
READ: UAAP: UE Red Warriors with back to zero mentality in second round
“It’s an enormous struggle for them. We want the young players to only loosen up. They appear to be straying away from the system. In fact, they need to help, but sometimes you’ll be able to see that some players are forcing their shots. We’ve lost our extra passes and a number of the team effort. We just must get past this hurdle,” he added.
Santiago, though, is specializing in what the Red Warriors must do next as an alternative of what they need to have done with a return to the Final 4 hanging within the balance.
“Truthfully, we’re not talking about that anymore because I see that it puts an excessive amount of pressure on the boys, knowing they only need a pair more wins. Imagine, we finished 5-2 in the primary round. We already knew that reaching seven wins would put us in an excellent spot,” he said. “Perhaps that’s why this feels latest for the boys. For the way a few years, this might be the longest and one of the best record UE has had.”
But despite the drawback, Santiago is confident that his team has what it takes to take what began as a magical run in Season 87 deeper within the post season.
“I never lose hope. I do know my players thoroughly. Right away, we just must embrace all the pieces,” said Santiago.
“I can see it within the boys. It’s going to be a special UE team come playoffs or Final 4. Once you’re within the Final 4, it’s 0-0 again. There’s no more number one or number 4. The one advantage is the twice-to-beat, but for me, all the pieces resets, and it’s anybody’s ball game. We just must recover from that hump.”
