Stirring turnaround for ‘no-fear, no-regrets’ Bulldogs

NU coach Eric Altamirano. RYAN LEAGOGO/INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO

A season after blowing its title chance as the No. 1 seed, National University has turned into a fourth-ranked underdog that still has a strong shot at crashing the UAAP men’s basketball championship.

“Right now our focus is to get to the Finals,” said NU coach Eric Altamirano. “We’re one win away and that’s what we’re focusing on, not what happened last year.”

The Bulldogs embarrassingly lost to University of Santo Tomas in last year’s Final Four to become the first No. 1 squad to lose a twice-to-beat advantage over a fourth-seeded team.

But this time, the No. 4 Bulldogs found themselves on the opposite end as they moved within a win of upsetting the top-ranked Ateneo Blue Eagles.

Unveiling a surprise performer in Jay Alejandro, the Bulldogs clipped the Eagles, 78-74, last Wednesday to forge a sudden-death match for a title berth.

“We’ve moved on from last year; that’s a different team,” said Altamirano, who had two-time MVP Ray Parks leading a powerhouse roster. “There’s more pressure on the No. 1 team compared to the No. 4.”

Even with no legitimate star to match up with Ateneo standout and season MVP Kiefer Ravena, the Bulldogs have raised their record to 5-0 in head-to-head encounters with the Eagles since last year.

“They showed a lot of character,” Altamirano said of his squad led by Gelo Alolino, Troy Rosario and Alfred Aroga. “Before this game, we said we’d play with no fear and play with no regrets.”

The Bulldogs will try to advance to the Finals by overcoming the Eagles’ twice-to-beat edge in a knockout duel on Wednesday at Smart Araneta Coliseum.

In the other semifinal pairing, No. 2 Far Eastern U will aim for the first title berth over defending champion La Salle at 4 p.m. tomorrow at Mall of Asia Arena.