They say basketball is at its purest when it’s a winner-take-all game. Statistics are more often than not thrown out the window as instincts and experience take over. And by the looks of it, that was the UP Fighting Maroons’ winning formula in UAAP Season 87.
The Fighting Maroons were quicker to every loose ball and rebound, flipping the narrative against the DLSU Green Archers, who were the UAAP’s best rebounding team this year. Crashing the boards was the battle they rightly focused on, as it led to extra possessions, second-chance points, and opportunities at the free throw line.
Many will harp on the Green Archers atrocious free throw shooting (12 makes on 28 attempts) and Kevin Quiambao being substituted at a crucial part of Game 3, but what aided UP was their efforts in limiting La Salle’s chances of finding ways to bounce back.
If anything, it was the Fighting Maroons who did the bouncing back.
Prior to Season 87, DLSU’s frontcourt was going to be a problem for UP largely because of the departure of Malick Diouf, but Quentin Millora-Brown provided the stability they needed in the paint. His averages of 14.0 points (on 64.0 percent field goal shooting), 9.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and a steal in the Fighting Maroons’ three finals games were valuable, but it was his two free throws that sealed the deal and brought UP to the top.
Francis Lopez heard it from all corners after his Game 2 blunders, but instead of becoming the scapegoat of another first runner-up finish, he became the hero that the Fighting Maroons needed. The miscues seemed to be an inevitable part of his game, but his huge 3-pointer late in the game atoned for all of that.
A victory like this naturally makes one think of the next one, but the departures of Millora-Brown and Finals MVP JD Cagulangan make the outlook for Season 88 a bit more murky. Rey Remogat should be able to step in Cagulangan’s role, but UP will need to find a reliable replacement for Millora-Brown especially when they have to contend with the likes of Green Archers Michael Phillips, Luis Pablo, and Mason Amos, the FEU Tamaraws’ Veejay Pre, and more. Then again, that’s a story for another time, as the Fighting Maroons can now have more than six months to enjoy the spoils of a title win.
In a game where possession of the Season 87 Men’s Basketball Championship was hanging in the balance, the difference maker was in… dominating possessions. The UP Fighting Maroons gave the DLSU Green Archers a taste of their own medicine with their relentless energy in crashing the boards.
The words “they wanted it more” may have never rang true than in this series, which saw the Fighting Maroons finally break through after two years of being so close yet so far.
