Champion coach Haydee Ong glad to see UST players play a strong supporting role for Kent Pastrana to start round 2 of UAAP Season 87.
The UST Growling Tigresses heeded head coach Haydee Ong’s call to step up to the plate as both veterans and young guns came to play to start round 2 of UAAP Season 87, dominating the UP Fighting Maroons for an 84-57 win Sunday, October 13.
As MVP aspirant Kent Pastrana suffered first half struggles against the Fighting Maroons, Tacky Tacatac and Karylle Sierba filled in the gaps when it came to scoring for UST. After seeking consistency from her other players, Ong was satisfied at what she saw.
[RELATED: Haydee Ong calls on more Tigresses to step up as UST reaches halfway mark of title defense]
“I told the team talaga coming into sa second round, si Kent talaga ang nasa game plan parati ng team, di ba? So, I'm happy that sila Karylle, sila Tacky, and other players showed up talaga para matanggal din yung burden of scoring kay Kent,” she said.
Tacatac and Sierba were responsible for 10 of UST’s 12 triples as they chipped in with five three-pointers each in the victory.
The seasoned veteran in Tacky finished with a game-high 23 points, while first-year player Sierba was a highly efficient 5-of-8 from the field for 15 points.
Knowing that she can count on any of her players to take up the responsibility when it comes down to the wire, Ong said that she was delighted at what her team showed to open the second round.
“Of course, I'm very happy. Gaya ng sinabi ni Tacky, it's all team effort. Masayang-masaya kami. Hindi lang kita sa mukha ko, pero masaya ako. So, yeah, it's a team effort and kudos to the ladies,” she said.
As defending champions, Ong expects things to get more difficult for the Growling Tigresses. She treats the latter half of the season as a “war round” as teams now jockey for position with the Final Four looming.
But with each game crucial to their final goal of retaining the crown, Ong said that they are continuing to take things one game at a time.
“We wanted to treat every game per game talaga. So, it's nice with the schedules that we have. Parang we have more time to rest. Every week lang yung laro, there's one lang na magkasunod,” said Ong.
“So, ano pa rin ako, per game basis pa rin on how we can prepare and be able to get every win every time naglalaro kami.”
The Growling Tigresses play in their home court next as they face the Ateneo Blue Eagles at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion on the weekend. They tip off at the España venue at 10 a.m. on Saturday.