NU head coach Jeff Napa didn’t mince his words in firing back against naysayers who downplayed their upset over the UP Fighting Maroons as a pure stroke of luck.
NU Bulldogs’ head coach Jeff Napa had some choice words on Wednesday following their 67-62 upset over the fourth-seeded UST Growling Tigers at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
Ahead of Wednesday’s game, Napa caught wind of naysayers downplaying their recent 67-47 upset against the UP Fighting Maroons as a mere stroke of luck. Understandably, it struck a chord seeing NU’s suffocating defense disregarded, as well as how their offense was hitting shots throughout the 20-point beating.
So for Napa, upsetting UST sends a strong message against those naysayers.
“Number one, doon sa mga hindi naniniwala na tinalo namin ‘yung UP, ito ‘yung kasunod. Hindi chamba yung tinalo namin ‘yung UP. Hindi malas ‘yung UP. Naglaro kami nang tama, ganon kasimple,” said the fourth-year Bulldogs coach.
“Ngayon tinalo namin UST, naglaro rin kami nang tama. Ganon lang kasimple. Thankful ako sa mga players ko, ganon kasimple. Thank you.”
The Bulldogs completed a late comeback against the Tigers on Wednesday, with a crucial 17-3 run giving them a 64-58 lead with 4:36 left in regulation. A Kyle Paranada triple and Mo Tounkara’s split from the free-throw line gave UST some life with 2:27 left before NU’s defensive stops sealed the upset.
Wednesday’s win marks NU’s first back-to-back victories for Season 87 and comes three days after they blew out the Fighting Maroons at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion. The Bulldogs now hold a 4-8 record with two games left in eliminations.
Like the game against UP, NU went in without the added pressure of entering the Final Four.
“Whatever the result, at least wala ka nang pagsisisihan, gaya nung ginawa namin sa UP na hindi namin chinambahan talaga. Tinrabaho ng mga bata ‘yon kaya sa mga nagki-credit na malas ‘yung UP, ito ‘yung kapalit sa inyo. W [against UST] diba? Panalo,” Napa stressed.
“Mamatay na kayo sa inggit. Ganon lang kasimple kasi masyado niyong dinadown ‘yung NU…Naglalaro rin kami, kasama rin kami sa UAAP.”
Jeff Napa continued to defend his players, stressing that NU’s all-Filipino setup isn’t easy with rival teams fielding their own foreign student athletes. You may recall that their FSA Mo Diassana went down with an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear during the Bulldogs’ season opener against La Salle last September 8.
“Sino ba ‘di mahihirapan maglaro nang walang import dito sa UAAP? Okay lang kung nandon kami sa NCAA baka kami pa nasa taas eh! Ganun lang kasimple ‘yun,” said Napa, referring to the NCAA’s ban on FSAs since Season 96. “Pero dito sa UAAP iba ‘yung level eh…Napakataas. So…siyempre ‘yung expectation ko sa mga players ko talaga is high standards talaga.”
“Kaya for your information, hindi chamba ‘yung ginawa namin, nakadalawang sunod kami. Nakakainis lang eh, kasi ‘yung mga players nababalewala eh. I-value niyo naman ‘yung ginagawa ng mga players. Ganon lang kasimple. Kahit wag na ako, ‘yung mga players ko lang,” Napa stressed.
No pressure
Mainstays Jolo Manansala and Jake Figueroa are equally glad to see the Bulldogs get some wins for Season 87.
Manansala had a season-best 18 points and seven rebounds against UST, while Figueroa came alive in the second half to finish with 13 points (seven in the fourth quarter), 11 rebounds, and five assists.
“Sabi ni Coach Jeff sa amin lagi na ‘yung mga past few games namin na talo kami na dikit. Ngayon sa second round, sabi nya sa amin na tapusin natin ang maganda yung season na ito. Luckily, nagagawa naman,” said Manansala.
“Whatever the result is, okay lang. At least parang alam namin, ginagawa namin yung part namin. So, parang pag natapos ‘yung season, alam din namin sa sarili namin na ginawa din namin talagang yung best namin,” added Figueroa.
Manansala shared how this approach renewed their enjoyment of the game.
“Practice pa lang kasi, ine-enjoy na namin sa practice before pa magka-game eh. So parang nata-translate talaga namin sa game. Nag-start ‘yan nung UP. So parang ine-enjoy lang talaga namin. Hindi namin inisip na makakahabol pa kami, ganun,” said the Kapampangan forward.
NU will play their final elimination games against the Adamson Soaring Falcons on November 10 and the La Salle Green Archers on November 13. With playoff hopes set aside, all that matters now is putting on a show for their ever-supportive community.
“Tinutulog na nga lang namin ang pressure. Kumbaga, ang pressure ‘yung mga kalaban namin, na sa kanila ang pressure. Kasi kami, we came out to compete para sa community talaga. Kahit saan may SM, magtatayo ang NU,” Napa said, partly in jest. “So para doon, para makilala lalo kami, kaya ito kami ngayon, nagpapakilala ulit.”
Banner image courtesy of the UAAP Media Bureau.