FEU Tamaraws look to rebuild and exceed expectations

MANILA, Philippines – “Maybe we’ll be seeded 6th or 7th again this year and hopefully we exceed expectations. It’s always like that.”

That’s what FEU Tamaraws head coach Nash Racela is expecting for his seniors’ men’s basketball squad for this year’s Season 77 of local collegiate sports league University Athletic Association of the Philppines (UAAP). 

Despite the Tamaraws’ third place finish in Season 76, where they were ousted in the Final Four by eventual champions De La Salle Green Archers, Racela believes his Terrence Romeo and RR Garcia-less team will most likely be figured in as a 6th or 7th seed in pre-UAAP predictions. 

In Racela’s debut season with the Tamaraws last year, there wasn’t much hype surrounding his team as well prior to Season 76. But the Morayta-based cagers surpassed expectations and even swept the first round of eliminations.

However, this year’s “6th or 7th seed” prediction may carry more weight.

Without the backcourt duo of Season 76 Most Valuable Player (MVP) Romeo and former MVP Garcia, FEU’s offense is much less formidable. In fact, not only will they miss Romeo’s average of 21.69 points per game and Garcia’s 12.80 points per game, per pba-online.net, they will also miss their playmaking and leadership. 

Both Romeo and Garcia joined the professional league right after the UAAP season, with Garcia, 24, maxing out his 5 playing years. The 21-year old Romeo, on the other hand, opted to forego his 5th year at the last minute to enter the draft. They both ended up in the same team again with Globalport Batang Pier.

Racela admits it was a heavy blow to the Tamaraws losing his two star players. But he said even more painful is the fact that his defensive rotation also has a huge dent with the graduation of shooting guard Gryann Mendoza.  

“Malaking kawalan sila (Romeo and Garcia) especially offensively. Yung firepower,” Racela told Rappler. “Siguro not only Terrence and RR but mas mabigat sa amin din si Mendoza, not only offensively but more, I think, defensively mas mararamdaman namin.” (They’re a huge loss to us especially offensively. The firepower. Maybe not only Terrence and RR but a heavier loss is Mendoza, not only offensively but more, I think, defensively we’ll feel his absence.)

No recruits

According to Racela, the Tamaraws won’t be having any recruits from other high schools for this season. The only possible new players FEU might get, Racela says, will be coming from their own high school team. 

This year, Racela says there are about 5 or 6 graduating players from the juniors. Though he’s not cerain if they could accommodate everyone in the seniors team. 

“Maybe [we will absorb] 3 or 4. Just like last year, I think we had 8 or 9 graduates. But we absorbed only 4 or 5,” he explained.

Though he says he will continue to keep an eye out for any high school player from other schools. And should he find someone who’s ready to play right away, it may just be one lone recruit.

“Sa ngayon mukhang wala,” Racela said. “Unless biglang may available na ready na. If ever there is baka isa lang.” (Right now it seems there will be no recruit. Unless someone is suddenly available and ready. If ever there is, it might just be one.)

Rebuilding

More than aiming high for this year’s UAAP season, FEU’s goal is to lay the ground work for a long-term basketball program that will hopefully yield positive results in two to 4 years or longer. 

It starts this year by honing young talent and tapping into potential usually surpassed by others.

The FEU program, Racela says, is expanding to include a team C, in addition to the current teams A and B.

Collegiate basketball programs normally have two sets of basketball teams, where team A is the primary team who competes in the major leagues. While a second unit called team B is usually for up and coming players who are still being trained or developed.

For FEU, adding a team C means digging deeper and looking at potential athletes who do not necessarily know how to play basketball but are athletic enough and can be taught.

“Starting this year, instead of having just teams A and B, we’re planning to have teams A, B and C,” Racela explained FEU’s current set-up. “Right now, most of our team B players are projects. We’re looking at maybe 2 to 4 years before they could even play. Kasi hindi na kami makakuha ng ready players.” (Because we can’t get ready players.)

He added: “Now, we’re getting mga potential lang. Siguro mga 6-foot-5 pero young, lanky. They don’t even know how to play pa so tinuturuan na rin namin. We’re hoping that after 3 years they’ll be ready.” 

(Now, we’re getting potential players. Maybe 6-foot-5 but young, lanky. They don’t even know how to play so we’re teaching them.)

All this, he says, is part of their effort to rebuild the team that last won a title in 2005.

“Yung team B namin (Our team B) now we’re trying to get recruits from other universities [that are] non-UAAP. Maybe NCAA or other non-UAAP and non-NCAA schools,” Racela said. “We’re still looking at other high school players na other schools aren’t really interested in. We’ll try to get them.”

Missing ingredient

He may have no recruits and his star players may have gone pro, but Racela knows he has gems among his remaining bunch.

For now, working with what he has is the only choice for Racela. But that doesn’t mean it’s all downhill. He still has an experienced team with players raring to step up and fill in the gaps.

“We will work on what we have the next few months,” Racela said. “We just started practicing in January. We’re just hoping that our older guys will be able to step up and perform. And the newer guys will just become support cast.”

He also singled out Roger Pogoy, a forward who normed 6.53 points and 6.33 rebounds last seaon, according to pba-online.net. 

“Sana si Pogoy maging ready. I think this will be his opportunity. Yung time niya.” (I hope Pogoy will be ready. I think this will be his opportunity. This is his time.)

Crucial gaps that need to be filled, according to Racela, are the guard positions left behind by Romeo and Garcia. Knowing other positions can be filled quite well, Racela is scouting for point guards, which he admits is quite the challenge.

“Yung sa point guard spot talaga, yun ang mahirap.” (The point guard position, that’s tough.)

But for Racela, the single most crucial missing ingredient that could take his squad a level higher is maturity.

“Maturity pa (More maturity),” he admitted, adding that it is something they can only acquire as they go along, starting with tune-up games leading to the summer’s preseason FilOil tourney. 

“Maybe time should be able to give us that. We’ll see.” 

The FEU Tamaraws did not look so threatening this time last year as well. The had Garcia and Romeo then, but the storylines always revolved around their chemistry on and off the court, and how their supporting cast may or may not be sufficient.

But this time around, Racela has a golden opportunity to find diamonds hidden among his quiet and under-the-radar players. All he needs to do is to spot them and rub off the mud. 

Looking forward to having 16 King Tamaraws next season!!

— Nash Racela (@scwtN) October 18, 2013

– Rappler.com