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Scoreline.ph Exclusive: A Chat with UE head coach Jack Santiago
In a remarkable upset, University of the East stunned the defending champions De La Salle University Green Archers by narrowly defeating them, 75-71, in the UAAP Season 87 men's basketball tournament at the SM Mall of Asia Arena Sunday evening, September 22.
The Red Warriors gave La Salle their first loss of the season as they delivered a scorching hot shooting of 12-of-30 from downtown witnessed by 6,946 spectators inside the arena.
In an exclusive interview with Scoreline.ph, UE head coach Jack Santiago shared the contributing factors that led to their team's victory.
Jack Santiago, UE head coach/Banner by: Scoreline.ph Editorial Team
"I think our teamwork played a very important role in our win against La Salle. Our players played unselfish basketball and everybody showed heart, and to me that’s what led us to winning the game," Santiago said.
He also shared the adjustments and preparations they made before facing the defending champions that propelled them to their success.
"We changed match ups and as a team we agreed that we needed to have a strong start. Playing against the defending champions, we made sure that we spent extra time learning their game and made sure that we are ready come game day," shared by the winning coach.
The plan came into fruition when UE stepped on the gas early and built a 28-11 lead in the first quarter of the play.
Although the Red Warriors had a strong start, they still felt the challenge thrown by the Green Archers led by reigning UAAP Season 86 MVP Kevin Quiambao backed-up by his partner, Michael Philipps. However, the wards of coach Jack never wavered and found ways to overcome the obstacle including the suffocating defense of their opponent.
Asked about the challenges, the UE mentor said: "Of course, their full court press will always be a challenge playing against La Salle. As a team it is something that we really spent time working on at practice. We made sure to learn how to break their defense and that we do well on ours too."
The win might be a big one for the Red Warriors and it's something that they can be proud of, but coach Santiago remained grounded and that's what he appreciated about his team.
"What I love about this team is that they are very humble kids. I always tell them that in times of victory, they should always keep themselves grounded," Santiago complimented the attitude of his players.
Their victory also delighted the basketball enthusiasts and thought that they might go a long way this season with the stellar play they showcased on Sunday paced by the career-game of John Abante who scored 20 points while firing a perfect 3-of-3 behind the arc, grabbing four rebounds, and sinking two-crucial free throws with 3.4 seconds left to complete the upset.
But again, Coach Jack wanted to stay on the ground as it is still early to tell and there are a lot of things to work on before they can finally reach their goal of entering the final four, or even grabbing the championship ring.
"It’s too early to say but, of course, every team is looking to be in the final four. Obviously, it’s not going to be a piece of cake. We still have to work very hard to make sure that we are on the right path and are following our system to ensure that we reach our goals this season," he told Scoreline.ph.
Coach Jack and the UE Red Warriors might be wary of a lot of things but their huge win last weekend, which also marked their second straight victory of the season, can become the stepping stone in reaching the top of their goals and surely earned the respect of all other teams.
