Humblebola

BY MARCUS ASINAS

The UP Fighting Maroons head into the season as a championship favorite once again. Can they live up to the hype coming of being the biggest winners of the offseason?

Last UAAP Season 85, the UP Fighting Maroons started the season as the defending champs, showed their muscle the elimination round and secured a twice-to-beat advantage during the Final Four. However, the season ended with a painful championship loss to the Ateneo Blue Eagles. But the pain did not stop there. The UP community received even more painful news as two key players; Carl Tamayo and James Spencer decided to forgo their remaining playing years to play overseas. And then key members of the UAAP season 84 championship team, Calimag, Lina, and Eusebio transferred to different universities and colleges.

Season 86 is redemption season for the Fighting Maroons, and the first order of business is to bring back the championship trophy to the other side of Katipunan. Filling in the void left by Carl Tamayo and Zav Lucero was a challenging task, but the UP front office did not disappoint, pulling in high-caliber recruits from different schools within the Philippines and other parts of the world. All eyes will definitely be on LeBron Lopez given his unexpected turnaround from the Ateneo bonfire to the Maroon side of Katipunan. Lopez was Tamayo’s sweet goodbye to his beloved university as he became instrumental in recruiting the 6’6 athletic guard. UP tapped the service of LSGH’s twin tower, Seven Gagate and Luis Pablo to add some height and offensive arsenal.

As a backup for the reigning MVP Malick Diouf, Coach Gold tapped the 6’11 Fil-Am Sean Alter of Volcano Vista High School in New Mexico. Another Fil-Am player joined the squad, Chicco Briones Jr., a 6’6 versatile guard. Two National University standouts will finally play for the maroon jersey, Janjan Felicilda and Reyland Torres from Coach Goldwin’s old stomping ground. Other notable new firepowers on the block are Mark Belmonte and LA Andres.

Finally, after a year of recovering from an ACL injury, Captain CJ Cansino is ready to avenge the Fighting Maroons. The ever-reliable playmaker JD Cagulangan will serve as a vocal leader who will look to empower the rookies as the senior of the team. Fans can still remember Harold Alarcon’s Hail Mary shot during the last few seconds of the final game and will certainly need him this season. UP was at the cusp of defending their championship in game 3 of the finals but fell short. With the addition of talented rookies and experienced seniors, will there be another championship bonfire in Sunken Garden at the end of the season?