NO TIME FOR REGRETS

The Maroons will have to figure out how to stop dominant big men after failing to contain UST’s Collins Akowe. —UAAP MEDIA

It wasn’t the start coach Goldwyn Monteverde and the University of the Philippines had hoped for in Season 88 of the UAAP men’s basketball tournament.

But getting pounded, 87-67, by a University of Santo Tomas team that dominated Sunday’s marquee encounter left the defending champion with little time to rue the defeat, what with another Final Four team on the horizon for the Fighting Maroons.

“This is not the usual start that we wanted,” Monteverde said. “But as I always say, life goes on after this loss.”

UP will be facing Adamson, which almost pulled off an upset in the collegiate season’s opening weekend when it pushed title favorite La Salle to the limit before succumbing, 60-58.

Adamson even led late in that contest before a combination of defensive lapses and clutch plays from La Salle’s debuting guard Jacob Cortez cemented the result.

“As a team we should be prepared [for the next game] and we can’t think too much on the disappointment of our loss. So we need to move forward,” the UP mentor said.

It was UP’s first season-opening defeat since Season 84. But that 2022 tournament eventually ended with UP capturing the school’s first title in 36 years, so the Maroons do have history on their side.

But UP needs to figure out a lot of things. On top of that, the DIliman squad had no answer for the dominant performance of UST’s Collins Akowe, who posted 29 points and 17 rebounds in his Tigers debut.

UST led 16-4 after the opening tip, forcing UP to play catch-up the rest of the way. The Maroons were able to cut the margin to single digits, but the Tigers always had an answer.

UP paraded debutant Rey Remogat, who was recruited from the University of the East and underwent a one-year residency, but the preseason revelation was limited to five points on 2-of-6 shooting while playing less than 10 minutes.

Francis Nnoruka posted six points, 11 rebounds and two blocks in starting his role, but his presence wasn’t enough to contain Akowe.

With the kind of roster UP has, it’s easy to charge that defeat as a fluke, with the Maroons scheduled for a turnaround. And they plan on doing that as soon as possible.

“There’s no time to feel sorry for ourselves,” Monteverde said.