UE Red Warriors hoping to finally shed darkhorse image

Can the current University of the East roster end the school’s 24-year title drought in the UAAP men’s basketball tournament this year?

For playing with a line-up that can match up against any team, the Red Warriors are considered as the darkhorse in the 72nd season of the country’s premier collegiate tournament. The UAAP basketball crown has eluded C.M. Recto for more than two decades ever since an offensive-defensive pair of Allan Caidic and Jerry Codiñera gave the Red Warriors its last back-to-back crown during the 1984-85 seasons. Even UE coach Lawrence Chongson feels that they can somehow change the course of history that already points to Ateneo defending their title. That premonition came when the Red Warriors beat the highly-favored Far Eastern U convincingly last Sunday at the Big Dome to avenge their 76-72 first round loss against the Tamaraws. That win cemented the Red Warriors’ hold of the third spot with their 6-4 win-loss slate and open up a chance to even snare the No.2 position depending on the outcome of their last four games. Although host FEU is still in second place with an 8-2 record, that UE win showed that not only defending champion Ateneo can beat the Tamaraws but also a less heralded team like the Warriors. Chongson believes that they have a lot of work to do but is very optimistic that, if his boys can focus on the job ahead, they can post more surprises. “Ang battle cry namin ay self-respect (Self-respect is our battle cry)," said Chongson. "The team can only (lose) to as many teams if we do not believe in ourselves." With that in mind, UE’s version of the Big Three – guard Paul Lee, slotman Narciso Llagas and wingman Elmer Espiritu – doubled their efforts not only in offense but also in defense denying FEU of the extra passes and dictated the tempo of the game. “Our defense was the key," said Chongson. “We were able to limit them to 31 points in the second half." Good thing UE adjusted its defense in the second half after allowing FEU to score 31 points in the second period that erased the Warriors’ double-digit advantage allowing the Tamaraws to threaten at 45-41 at the turn. But UE tightened up its defense in the third limiting FEU to just 14 points for a 70-55 spread heading into the final 10 minutes of the match, where the Recto-based quintet protected their lead to secure the win. That UE defense held FEU to a season-low 33.8 percent shooting clip with the Tams going 25-of-74 from the field. The question now is can UE sustain its momentum going into the final three weeks of the elimination round. Up next for the Warriors is the struggling Green Archers of De La Salle University on Saturday (August 29) a match that would certainly test UE’s focus and determination of achieving its goal of earning a Final Four berth. UE will be going up against a dangerous La Salle squad that is hoping to end its four-game slide in order to save the Archers’ sinking campaign. "The key against La Salle is to play them the way we did today," said Chongson several minutes after defeating FEU. "It will be an important match, not only for us but for La Salle," added Chongson. "They (La Salle) are still in fifth place. So we better do something about that." "We will not rely on other teams. We will try to do it ourselves," said Chongson, who’s been getting superb games from fifth-year players Espiritu and Llagas but is hoping for a more consistent game from reliable playmaker Lee. Llagas led UE in defeating FEU with 24 points and six rebounds while Espirit added 20 markers and grabbed seven boards, providing the 1-2 combination for the UE offense. After La Salle, UE will meet University of the Philippines on September 3, National U on September 5 and Santo Tomas for its last elimination round assignment on September 10. UE had mixed results in the first round against their last four opponents. The Red Warriors defeated La Salle, 65-46, UP, 77-69 and NU, 63-59 but dropped a 92-88 heartbreaker against UST. If the Warriors can repeat against their first round victims they can be assured of a Final Four spot, a doable goal given their improvement in the second phase of the elimination. – Perry Legaspi, GMANews.TV