Manny V. Pangilinan was seen celebrating with the Blue Eagles, who redeemed the crown seven months after losing it to UP.
Sporting a navy blue Louis Vuitton shirt, Manny V. Pangilinan watched intently from his patron seat at the Smart Araneta Coliseum as Ateneo took on UP in Game 3 of the UAAP Men’s Basketball Finals.
Like every other sports fan, he would sometimes stand up and applaud with a child’s gusto whenever Ateneo scored. From time to time he would also react to calls he thought were wrong or unfair.
Except he’s no ordinary sports fan. MVP is the godfather of the Ateneo basketball program that has been dominant over the last decade or so.
That’s why when the confetti fell on the Blue Eagles on Monday night, MVP entered the court and joined in on the fun.
He was mighty proud of the Blue Eagles.
At the onset of Season 85, Ateneo was not really favored to win it all. But with a tried-and-tested genius in head coach Tab Baldwin at the helm, the Blue Eagles came out on top of the heap after the elimination round and beat UP in three scintillating games in the finals to regain the crown — their fourth in the last five seasons.
“They’ve done a good job. And Tab (Baldwin) has done his magic again on the team because in the beginning we’re not really rated,” he said.
But while he was happy Ateneo overcame such tag and redeemed itself after conceding the title to the same team seven months ago, Pangilinan only had good words for the opposing team.
“But huge credit to UP. They did not give up. They’re a very good team, good coaching. Huge tribute to them. Huge credit to the UP team. They deserve being congratulated also,” he said.
UP rallied behind fallen comrade in Zav Lucero, who only played 0.7 ticks in Monday’s contest because of a knee injury he suffered in Game 2.
Down by as many as 20 points, the Fighting Maroons crawled back and got to within three, 67-70 on Harold Alarcon’s wild corner triple with 20.1 seconds remaining.
UP lived up to its moniker: Fighting Maroons. Even after facing a seemingly insurmountable lead, they fought on. And for that, MVP is proud.
“Equally proud of our competitor, UP. They did very well… Unfortunately Lucero got injured,” he said.