Paul Desiderio and Jett Manuel. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
Jett Manuel doesn’t want to end his collegiate career with a record he can’t be proud of.
And the skipper of the UP Maroons knows he will need the cooperation of the entire team to avoid a disgraceful exit.
“I told the team that it can’t be just two, three or four players who should step up,” said Manuel after the Maroons’ recent breakthrough 56-52 victory over Ateneo. “All of us have to do his share for us to win.”
The graduating shooting guard is again expecting the rest of his teammates to deliver in a crucial matchup with the Adamson Falcons before the Far Eastern University Tamaraws face the struggling University of Santo Tomas Tigers in the UAAP Season 79 men’s basketball today at Mall of Asia Arena.
Though UP continues to dwell at the cellar sharing identical 2-6 records with University of the East and UST, the Maroons have their new-found confidence in closing out games going for them.
“I think we can match up well with Adamson,” said UP coach Bo Perasol despite losing to the Falcons by 19 points in the opening game of the season. “They’ve (Falcons) improved well under the leadership of coach Franz (Pumaren), but with the grit my team had displayed, we have a chance against them.”