Motor Mike Phillips closes a storybook chapter as a DLSU Green Archer in the UAAP.
Three years after he first debuted in the UAAP, Mike Phillips’ time as a DLSU Green Archer has come to a close.
Making a name for himself as a high-energy big man, Motor Mike ends a fruitful stay in DLSU as a two-time UAAP champion and two-time Mythical Five awardee, having stuck with the Archers through thick and thin before finding sustained success in his final two years.
But Mike isn’t just leaving DLSU as a champion. More than the wins and losses, he ends his chapter in Green and White as a person who found his purpose to inspire by taking the leap of faith to play in the Philippines.
“It was here in the Philippines, it was here in La Salle that I found my purpose in life, which is to use my platform, use every ounce of my talent, whatever it may be, to try and bring people closer to God,” Mike told reporters after DLSU’s finals Game 3 victory over the UP Fighting Maroons on Wednesday, December 17.
The Archers on Wednesday may have clinched the title against State U, but by no means was it an easy path back to the throne. Major injuries and key suspensions plagued DLSU throughout the season, while crucial losses placed a lot of doubt toward their title aspirations.
Even Mike admits that he wasn’t perfect throughout Season 88. Yet, at the end of the day, the Archers showed the heart of the champion, going on to complete a hard-earned path to redemption against a UP squad led by their graduating Maroon 5 core.
Mike also capped off his UAAP career with a monster 25-point, 18-rebound double-double en route to winning a Finals Most Valuable Player plum. The graduating big man averaged 13.3 points and 13.7 rebounds throughout the full three-game series.
Now that it’s all said and done, Mike believes that his final year was God’s way of using him to inspire others. That even if the going gets tough, there will always be that light at the end of the tunnel.
“Of course, there’s so many times, especially this season, where I haven’t been perfect, but I think that it’s just God using me to say ‘hey, I’m not perfect, but I know someone that is, and that is Jesus Christ, and that’s the reason I’m alive, the reason that I am here is because of Him,” Mike reflected.
“It’s just so much power in Jesus’ name because He lifted me when I was just so depressed in so many n so many dark storms. And I know there’s people out there who are going through the same dark storms who show up every day and just put on a face and put on a smile.”
Being a Green Archer also gave Mike the chance to be a leader, going from a rookie that once promised to get even for Kurt Lojera and Justine Baltazar in Season 84, to the “Kuya Mike” that rookies such as Guillian Quines, Gian Gomez, and Lebron Jhames Daep could turn to for motivation in Season 88.
“They’re praying to us the whole game, saying ‘Kuya Mike, this is for you!’. I’m like, ‘di pa ako nasasanay sa Kuya Mike!” said the ever-smiling big man.
“But just you know, from not making the Final Four to making the Final Four and being a champion; to losing the finals and now to winning it [again] finally, you know? God couldn’t have created a better story.”
Now that his DLSU career has come to a close, how does Mike Phillips want to be remembered in Taft Avenue? For him, such legacies aren’t exactly of utmost importance. True to his purpose, Motor Mike would rather be a vessel that continues to spread the word of Jesus Christ.
As he described it, Mike would prefer to be remembered as an “arrow that points up to God.”
“I had a dream about like this same moment. But I want to be remembered as an arrow, right? Because we’re Green Archers,” Mike said.
“I want to be remembered as an arrow that points up to God. Don’t focus on the arrow, focus on where it’s pointing to. If there are kids out there that look up to me, I tell them, one thing, look up even higher; don’t look up to me, look up to Jesus Christ! He’s the one that you should look up to.”
Images from Kieran Punay/KLIQ Inc.