Ending 23 Years of Tears
By Jonalyn Antonio, UE Correspondent
10 July 2009 06:21 PM
The almost 24 years of gap from not winning the UAAP championship has not hurt the team in any way. If anything, the Red Warriors will be back stronger than ever to surpass the roadblock to the elusive title in the UAAP season 72.
"It must stop there. This time, we are eager to get the crown and even eyeing to run for a back-to-back title," said new head coach Lawrence Chongson.
Despite several twice-to-beat advantages blown and one Finals stint with Dindo Pumaren at the helm, the Warriors do not want to live in the past and look forward in winning the crown that has eluded them in the past 23 seasons.
They will have to do that without key veterans Marcy Arellano and Hans Thiele.
If that is not enough, star playmaker James Martinez suffered an ACL injury in their last game in the 2009 Filoil Flying V Cup.
They lost a shooter who can open up the lane for the up-and-coming Paul Lee and veteran big man Elmer Espiritu’s slashings.
But still, Coach Chongson is unfazed with their exit, "It's about time for the other players to step up."
Despite the significant losses, the team is still moving forward hoping to cash in on pre-season winnings. For the first time in UE history, the Red Warriors went to Las Vegas to join the famed Abunazzar Impact Basketball Camp in April. There they won the Las Vegas Easter Showcase where they beat city selections all over the US. Prior to their US trip, they ended up as runners up in the Ning Dao Invitational in Chinese Taipei where a Korean College Team bannered by three Korean Basketball League-bound players emerged as champion.
"For me, freedom lang sa training para mailabas yung talent nila and at the same time natututo at nag-eenjoy sila. Nasa control kasi yan kung paano mo sila iha-handle. Most of them, nakasama ko na sa PBL so walang problema yung bonding namin and I act as a brother, kabarkada and a father at the same time," said Chongson, who is a long-time friend of UE’s Godfather Bong Tan.
Veteran players who will be bannering the red-and-white are PBL Best Player of the Conference Paul Lee, slam-dunking forward Espiritu, Fhadzmir "Toto" Bandaying, Paul Zamar, Pari Llagas, Rudy Lingganay, Raffy Reyes, Val Acuña, JM noble, Lucas Tagarda, Erwin Duran, and Jairold Flores.
Meanwhile, Rookies Garrick Ayala, JR Sumido, Alabanza, and Acibar are key additions to the squad which already have their fair share of quality court experience in their high school stints.
Ayala was a former Captain Ball of San Beda Red Cubs in the NCAA Jrs. while Sumido is from the Philippine Youth Team Iloilo. These four young cagers should immediately contribute to the Warriors’ cause to finally end the drought.
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