UAAP Season 77 Primer: FEU Tamaraws

Originally posted on the Balls Channel website

Head Coach: Raoul Cesar "Nash" Racela (2nd season)

Last Season: Third Place (10-4 in the eliminations)

                #3-seed in the Final Four, lost to La Salle in the Final Four

Key Losses: RR Garcia, Terrence Romeo, Gryann Mendoza, Christian Sentcheu, Joshua Aguilon, Jovannie Luz

Holdovers: Mike Tolomia, Mac Belo, Roger Pogoy, Carl Bryan Cruz, Anthony Hargrove, Achie Iñigo, Raymar Jose, Jeson Delfinado, Ron Dennison, Joel Lee Yu

Key Acquisitions: Russel Escoto (returnee), Francis Tamsi, Reeve Ugsang, Richard Escoto, Gus Denila, Jason David

The Coach Says:

“Our expectation is to be able to compete against the tougher teams. The end goal is to better the performance from last year, but we can’t look that far. So ang initial goal namin is to win games, get better and hopefully get to the Final Four. The key this year  will be our defense. When you lose 34 points from Terrence (Romeo) and RR (Garcia), mahirap na mag-depend on your offense. I know the capability of our team sa offense, but if we want to go far this year, it will be because of our defense.” – coach Nash Racela

The Players Say:

“Confident ako ngayon sa team kasi nagwo-work kami as a team. Alam naming sa lineup, di kami ganung kalakas, pero we’re working as a team at lalaban lang kami.” – Mike Tolomia, guard

“Walang masyadong pinagbago sa preparation namin. Basta ginagawa lang namin yung tama sa court, and focus sa defense. Yung ball movement namin, mas ikot yung bola, and yung transition namin, kailangan talagang tumakbo. Run-and-gun kami, at the same time, maganda yung defense namin dahil sa rotation.” – Mac Belo, forward

“We’re playing better team basketball. We lost Terrence and RR, who are our focal points on offense, but this year, we became more team oriented. We’re getting contributions from other players who didn’t play much last year.” – Anthony Hargrove, center

X-Factor: Achie Iñigo

The losses might hurt FEU, but Mike Tolomia has seamlessly took the lead role in the guard rotation. The question now is to who will be his backcourt tandem in the starting lineup.

Racela has already answered that by putting Iñigo in the point guard position, with Tolomia sliding to the two-guard role.

And in the preseason, the 22-year-old has proven himself worthy of the role, steadying the ship in numerous times in their tuneup games.

But again, the preseason is different from the UAAP, and for Iñigo, he said that he is ready for the challenge.

“Ready naman ako. Ngayon na nabigyan ako ng opportunity, I’ll just grab it,” he said. “Di ko naman pine-pressure yung sarili ko kahit na mabigat yung role na nawala sa amin. Kailangan lang i-fill yung spot na binakante nila, help my teammates improve, at gawin yung mga pinapagawa ni coach especially sa defense, executing plays, dishing assists, and grabbing rebounds.”

Prognosis:

Most teams go on a massive rebuilding stage when they lose two or three of their key players. FEU is not one of those teams.

Racela has been vocal in saying that the team has started its massive retooling the moment Romeo and Garcia took their mettle to the pros, and so far, after numerous tournaments, the Tamaraws are more than ready to start the season.

The FEU frontline will get a big boost from Mac Belo will be coming with a deep international experience after suiting up for Sinag Pilipinas last SEA Games. Still upfront for the Tamaraws are Hargrove, Carl Bryan Cruz, Raymar Jose, and the return of Russel Escoto.

Fourth-year forward RR Pogoy is also looking for a breakout season, as Racela has really preached the importance of sharing the ball in his squad’s dribble-drive offensive system.

FEU caught everybody off guard last season with a first round sweep, but the Tamaraws fizzled out as the season went on.

This time, they hope that they already learned from the mistakes of last year and sustain their winning momentum all season long.

If there’s one positive thing the departure of FEU’s former star guards has brought upon to the team, it is the team has bonded more, and the absence of a go-to guy would really be a big weapon for the Tamaraws, as Racela hopes that his 16 King Tamaraws can once again bring the trophy back to their lair.

*****

UAAP Previews: Adamson | Ateneo | La Salle | FEU | NU | UE | UP | UST