As they prepare for their quarterfinal match against San Beda University this Thursday, November 27, at the Mall of Asia Arena, Lyceum of the Philippines University head coach Gilbert Malabanan remains confident that his team has a real chance of defeating the No. 1 seed in Group B.
“Bilog ang Bola”
During the postgame interview of the LPU Pirates head coach, he mentioned that “the ball of the basketball is round”, re-emphasizing that in any type of game, it’s a 50-50 chance who’s going to win.
Thus, the longtime iconic Filipino basketball phrase was used again, “Bilog ang Bola.”
When asked by Rebanse what his thoughts are against the Agjanti Miller-led Red Lions, Malabanan responded:
“Yes tama yung sinabi mo, San Beda is yung #1 kabilang group [Group B] but again, bilog ang bola, diba? And nakalaban naman na namin sila sa elimination pero sabi ko sa players ko, tapos na yan eh. Ibang storya na yung lalaruin natin sa Thursday.”
The upset win that Head Coach Gilbert was referring to was the November 4 game of the Pirates against the Red Lions when they played at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.
He then reiterated that their main concern now is how to prepare for the Red Lions in just one day.
“Ang problema namin we only have one day lang to prepare for San Beda eh so sana nga maging blessing sa amin yung one day kase sabi ko nga ganun din yung sa San Sebastian. So one day lang din kami nag prepare.”
The 5th Year LPU Pirates mentor then acknowledged that the team they are facing is a legit contender for the title, but vowed they are going to do their best, and it’ll boil down to their “in-game adjustments”.
“Pero San Beda is one of the contenders. Siguro we will going to give our best on that game na talagang siyempre, we’re going to live or die in that game eh. Kami gusto namin mag move forward pa, umagat, siyempre San Beda ganun din ang gusto. So I think it’s a lot of adjustments nalang pag dating ng game.”
Offensive Depth? 40 points all from the Bench
In a Play-In game where LPU was outrebounded by the San Sebastian College-Recoletos, 45 – 37, the Pirates managed to get the 70 – 63 win.
How did they do that? 40 points all from their bench.
This is even more impressive as in the statistical sheet, other than being outrebounded, LPU also lost in some other departments of the game like: Points Off Turnovers (5 – 10), Points in the Paint (18 – 26), Second Chance Points (2 – 13), and Fastbreak Points (2 – 9)
When asked about their teams’ offensive depth, the 46 year old responded:
“Oo tama yung nakita niyo ano. First half talagang kinakain kami ng Baste, lahat ng ginagawa naming adjustment talagang nakaka-shoot ang Baste. Pero pagdating nung halftime, talagang iniba na namin yung adjustment namin especially sa defense.”
Coach Malabanan then revealed their secret, telling that he ordered his players to show some pressure defense in the backcourt against the Golden Stags.
“Talagang sinabi ko, kailangan natin sila pukpokin sa backcourt para pagdating nila sa frontcourt, medyo limited time nalang yung set-up pace nila and the good thing is ang nangyari is nag end up sila sa gusto naming mangyari kaya nalimitahan namin sila sa scoring nila.”
