UP Fighting Maroons’ Quentin Millora-Brown in a game against Adamson Falcons in the UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball tournament. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines — Tasked to bring energy and extra possessions, Quentin Millora-Brown continued to crash the boards for the University of the Philippines in the UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball tournament.
Millora-Brown tallied his second straight double-double of 11 points and 14 rebounds to help UP overcome a slow start and beat Adamson, 69-57, for their fifth straight win on Saturday at Mall of Asia Arena.
SCHEDULE: UAAP Season 87 basketball
“[The] board man gets paid as they say in the NBA. So for me, I think that just taking pride in every rebound I can get,” Millora-Brown told reporters. “The offensive rebounds, especially, can really help our team if we’re struggling offensively to find some rhythm, find points when we can’t. Just do it straight off of our flow, so, for me, I’ve always taken pride in it and I think that finding ways to just keep trying to improve that stat.”
tThe Filipino-American big man, who averaged 8.4 points and 10.2 rebounds in UP’s 5-0 start, provided seven of the team’s 22 offensive rebounds to convert 19 second-chance points.
“Every offensive rebound you get is another possession for your team. I think that every offensive rebound we can get as a team is so valuable, especially in a game like this where we couldn’t get anything offensively early,” Millora-Brown said.
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The one-and-done UP player displayed his willingness to win in 28 minutes of action to help his team recover from a 9-26 start in the first period.
“It’s all about winning and finding that next level. I think everyone on the team knows you gotta step up whenever you have the opportunity because opportunities don’t always come around. So, when you have it, you have to make the most out of it,” he said.
“I thought our first quarter, we came out a little stagnant, flat, we couldn’t hit shots, wasn’t getting stops on defense from the game plan we had planned for [Adamson]. But I thought that it was a great response for everyone to understand our shots we’re gonna come and just to stay patient and ready for when the time came.”
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In his first and only UAAP season, Millora-Brown is determined to bring back the crown to UP after back-to-back runner-up finishes.
“I just wanna protect the culture of winning at UP. It started in 84 when they got their first after a long drought, and then two back-to-back seasons so, I wanna help them get back their, I want us to leave a legacy of winning at UP for a long time,” Millora-Brown said.
“If I can look back 10 years from now, and see that everyone on the team has continued to win and continues to win, until then and beyond, then I think I’ll be really satisfied.”