Sean Chambers knows that his rookie-laden FEU Tamaraws are getting there, and its just a matter of getting through the inevitable learning curves.
It’s one thing to lose three straight early into the season, but it’s another story knowing these could have translated into three straight wins instead.
This has been the story of the FEU Tamaraws early into UAAP Season 87. Three games in, and there’s been a noticeable trend of solid first halves, only to collapse coming out of halftime.
It happened in the opener against Adamson where FEU was outscored 38-22 in the second half despite keeping it close in the first. Or in their second game against NU, which seemed like a major upset before they went cold in the fourth quarter.
Ethan Galang and Gjerard Wilson led UE’s second-half surge in their third game, which set up Galang’s late-game heroics for the Recto side. On the other hand, the Tams were (again) struggling to convert coming out of the locker room.
Simply put, heartbreak has accompanied the rookie-laden Tamaraws to open Season 87.
‘They’re good enough to do it’
But FEU head coach Sean Chambers is taking everything in stride. Again, it’s a rookie-laden Tamaraw squad representing Morayta this season. There’s the Baby Tams quartet led by Veejay Pre, 19-year-old foreign student-athlete Mo Konateh, and Fil-Am Nation Select’s Adam Nakai and Jayden Jones.
“I think you have to respect the fact that we’re fielding five freshmen. So, we are still certified freshmen and we’re still gonna go through some rollercoasters as young kids do, right? So, we don’t have any really older statesmen there to lead the way. So, we’re having growing pains with Janrey, and Veejay, and Jedrick, and…Adam started today, and Mo [Konateh],” Chambers said following FEU’s 51-56 loss to UE.
Royce Alforque is their lone fifth-year player, while Cholo Annonuevo is in his fourth year. Jorick Bautista and Miguel Ona, meanwhile, are among the Tams’ third-year players.
“But in the long run, they’re gonna be dynamic from it, right? So, like I told them, like, right now, my apologies to them because right now we’re asking a lot of them [the rookies] and they’re brand new to the team in this stage. But, they’re good enough to do it. So, eventually, they’re gonna be better from it,” Chambers said.
Youth aside, a “trickle-down” effect also affected FEU in Chambers’ view. For each loss, came added pressure as the Tams prepared for their next game, he said.
“We could’ve been in better shape the first game [against Adamson]. Now, you lose that game, and you come back in the second game [against NU]. You’re trying not to lose. Now, we had a chance to win the game but you know how it ended,” said Chambers, referring to NU’s 63-60 squeaker over FEU.
“Now, you feel the pressure of that game to these next two games. So, if we were more prepared at that first game, we would be all feeling a lot different today. But, there’s a chance we could’ve been easily 3-0.”
Silver linings
But Chambers has some positives, starting with the fact that these were winnable games. While painful, he acknowledged FEU’s competitiveness despite a current lack of experience.
His rookies also get much-needed mileage, especially in crunch time. As he puts it, no one but FEU will be fielding four freshmen to close the game out. Given this, it allows them to get used playing in high-pressure situations.
“So, that’s really what it is [the youth inexperience]. We’re playing great. Every game we’re there. We’re doing the things that a lot of people didn’t expect with this young group. And now, they just gotta learn how to win at the end of the game. And, that’s the sign of youth, right?” he said.
Like his Tamaraws, Chambers himself is a UAAP debutant, which comes with its own set of learning curves throughout the season.
“And that’s [FEU’s start] a sign of also…I have to do a better job in coaching them through those moments, and also me being new to the [UAAP] stage as well. So, we’re all going through it. Sure, this one is very painful, but I know in my heart, they’re all gonna be better from it,” Chambers admitted.
Up next for the FEU Tamaraws will be the UP Fighting Maroons on Sunday, September 22, followed by defending champs La Salle on September 25. They cap off September against also rebuilding Ateneo on the 29th, before facing neighborhood rival UST on October 2.
Chambers considers UP to be the “best team” in the UAAP, while La Salle has looked fine in its repeat bid. Ateneo remains winless, but it’s only a matter of time before they figure it out. UST, meanwhile, has shown flashes of being a Final Four contender.
“We’ve just got to continue to work on getting better. We’ll turn it around. We just don’t know when and where. But again, I don’t think there’s a team in the league that we cannot beat. But, I don’t think any other team is going to go through the same kind of growing pains that we are,” said Chambers.
“We are the youngest team in the league by far. And, literally, it’s unfair to the freshmen, but this is the job they’ve been given. But, this is our team until we continue to build from there.”
Banner image courtesy of the UAAP Media Bureau.