UP forward Carl Tamayo during a game against Ateneo in the UAAP Season 85 men’s basketball tournament at Mall of Asia Arena. UAAP PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines—Carl Tamayo made up for his crucial miscues with his late-game heroics as defending champion University of the Philippines survived Ateneo anew in overtime in the UAAP Season 85 men’s basketball tournament on Sunday.
Tamayo had a turnover off a pass by JD Cagulangan and also missed a couple of free throws in the waning seconds of regulation but redeemed himself in extra time where he scored six points, including a three-point play inside the final two minutes.
“I think nangyari ‘yun talaga sa laro, nagkakamali. Pero I think ‘yung trust namin sa isa’t isa na, okay lang ‘yan, may tsansa pa tayong manalo, depensa tayo. Wala namang nagsisihan noon. I think siguro ‘yung next play agad,” said Tamayo, who finished with 20 points, 13 rebounds, three assists, and a block, after the Fighting Maroons’ 76-71 victory before 12,106 fans at Mall of Asia Arena.
(Mistakes happen during games. But the important thing is it’s okay because we trust each other. We don’t resort to blaming each other. We just have to make it up in the next play by defending. It just happened at a crucial time.)
“Kasi parte naman sa laro ‘yun. Pwede mangyari ng first quarter, third quarter ‘yun. Pero nagkataon lang na noong crucial time. Tao lang tayo, nagkakamali rin. Pero I think ‘yung good thing doon, hindi kami bumitaw and nakuha pa namin ‘yung panalo.”
(It’s part of the game. We’re just human, we commit mistakes. But the good thing is we didn’t give up and we still got the win.)
Cagulangan commended Tamayo for staying locked in the game despite his lapses.
“For me, Carl made a great response. His reaction when we committed the turnover, he said we’ll make up for it next play,” said the returning point guard from a hamstring injury in Filipino. “And his response had a huge impact on me to make up for our error with a defensive stop.“
The 21-year-old Tamayo also gave credit to his teammates for keeping their faith in him, especially in crunch time.
“I don’t demand for the ball. My teammates just kept on finding me because I think I got the momentum in the fourth and overtime. Not only me, I think if Zavier played well that time, we will look for Zavier or someone else,“ said last season’s top rookie in Filipino. “I’m thankful to my teammates for their trust. They really tried to give the ball to me because they know that I got the momentum.”
“I had a hard time in the first half because I can’t shoot the ball. But I felt that they want me to keep shooting and don’t lose your confidence. That motivated me come second half, that I can do it for my team,” he added.
After reasserting their mastery over their finals rival Ateneo, Tamayo hopes UP keeps getting better as the season goes along.
“Hopefully, we continue to work and play as a team. We’re really happy that we overcame the challenge we went through today. We didn’t give up,” Tamayo said.