It’s quite apt that the UAAP is rolling with the theme “It all begins here” for the new season. The 81st season of the league feels like a fresh start, not just for several teams competing, but for the league itself.
UAAP Season 81 is all about new beginnings.
Last Wednesday, the Season 81 UST Growling Tigers took the floor before for an exhibition game to prepare for UAAP season 81.
There was one thing noticeable in this batch that set them apart from past teams.
Was it Renzo Subido and Embons Bonleon, the two veterans that are making their return after a year-long hiatus? Nope.
Was it was Aldin Ayo flexing his championship muscles from the bench? No.
Was it the crop of blue chip freshmen led by last season’s Juniors MVP and SLAM Rising Star Class of 2018 CJ Cansino? While this was may be the best bunch of rooks that the team has had in years, it still wasn’t it.
Could it even be Marvin Lee? His energy and body language during and after the game was worlds apart from a season ago where he looked fatigued and had difficulty effectively closing out games? No dice.
Actually, the most noticeable difference from this year’s UST team from previous years was heir uniforms.
Yes, the team still follows its traditional black-gold-white scheme. But a closer look will reveal that aside from this year’s refreshing look, there’s one thing notably missing.
For the first time in a long time, the UST Growling Tigers’ uniforms have no tiger stripes.
The absence of the perennial striped pattern goes beyond this year’s kits. It means something much bigger for the UST program. It connotes a simple and clean look for the team. A fresh start.
After a Finals appearance in Season 76 and 78, the past two seasons has been a tumultuous ride for UST. The heralded program got on the wrong side of history by finishing in last place in back-to-back seasons. To make matters worse there was a ton of conflict and misunderstanding on the sidelines, leading to several players sitting out and a strong clamor for coaching change.
It’s just appropriate that the team will have to earn their stripes this coming season.
Tapping a proven winner to provide mentorship was a start. The Growling Tigers were able to get their man in Ayo to be their next bench tactician. In a flash, the team suddenly transformed from being a cellar-dweller into a dark horse playoff contender. It’s not surprising given Ayo’s resume. He’s won it in both the UAAP and NCAA. He did it as a rookie head coach with the Letran Knights and again with the La Salle Green Archers a season later.
Yet even with his legendary status, he was conservative in his expectations when asked whether this will be the time wherein his team will turn for the better. “Wala kaming expectation sa result, We just want to compete, stay competitive. We started from scratch. Crucial dito is we have nine rookies. Six lang yung natira. But nag prepare naman kami sa abot ng makakaya namin. We will just do our best. And hopefully yung preparation namin enough na,” explained Ayo. With such roster dominated by rookies, expectations have to be tempered, even for a coach of Ayo’s caliber.
Then again, the six holdovers aren’t necessarily limited to providing veteran leadership. Five of them– Lee, Subido, Bonleon, Enrique Caunan,Jr. and Zachary Huang were all part of the last Growling Tigers squad that made it to a UAAP Finals back in Season 78. Lee, Subido and Bonleon all played crucial roles during that run to the Finals. Caunan and Huang’s games also evolved during that rough patch in UST hoops history. The sixth veteran, Steve Akomo has shown flashes of brilliance in his UAAP debut a season ago and he’s sure to have improved heading into this season.
The tune-up game of the team earlier this week was against former members of the UST Growling Tigers. While it may have only been an exhibition game, the sight of the team running the game’s basic actions was refreshing.
They were fluidly swinging the ball, looking for the open man, making precise cuts, playing tough defense, taking and making the best shot possible. I even noticed the players enjoying and having fun while playing. That was enough for me to conclude with conviction that the UST Growling Tigers have now exorcised past adversaries.
In the past two season, simple, basic basketball took a backseat to the drama that enveloped the team. This time around, it was good basketball at the forefront. Beating Growling Tiger legends by more than 50 points is surely a good confidence booster heading into the season.
UST may not have the most talented squad entering Season 81, but having a new coach to lead them, a talented batch of rookies, a new system to learn and a winning culture to build. These are all signs that UST Basketball is back and rising. This new group of Tigers will be earning their stripes soon enough, whether or not it goes back to their uniforms.
UAAP Season 81 Previews:
The Demolition Brothers Tag Team in NU
Franz Pumaren’s Flight Back to the Top
The Alvin Pasaol Cult Following
