New top Warrior Pasaol quick to move on from UE’s first loss

MANILA, Philippines – The season-opener went according to plan for the National University (NU) Bulldogs as they handily defeated the University of the East (UE) Red Warriors, 86-69.

Although the Season 77 champions controlled the second half, UE did their best to go toe-to-toe with the Bulldogs, as they tied up the game 4 times over 3 periods.

Leading the Red Warrior pack on the court is third-year forward Alvin Pasaol, who tallied a team-high 14 points on 6-of-14 shooting with 4 boards, 3 blocks and a steal. Despite being comparatively undersized at 6-foot-3 against the league’s other bigs, Pasaol charged on relentlessly, unafraid to bang and even converting and-ones against NU’s new center Issa Gaye.

Early foul trouble limited Pasaol, but he showed a level of cool-headedness despite a bruising style of play in limited minutes – a quality fit for a team leader, one humble enough to not take full credit for his new role. 

“Di naman talaga ako yung leader [lang]. Marami naman kami,” said the former Holy Cross of Davao College standout when asked how he felt in his first game as the leading Red Warrior. (“I’m really not the only leader. There are many of us.”)

“Marami naman kami, kaya ili-lead namin yung teammates namin sa upcoming game sa FEU.” (“There are many of us, so we’ll lead our teammates in our upcoming game with FEU.”)

Coach Derrick Pumaren said otherwise in a previous interview with ABS-CBN, calling him “our leader.”

“I expect him to carry us,” Pumaren added.

Pasaol said Coach Pumaren hopes to see the young team be more composed in future games.

“Nagkulang lang. Siguro yung mga rookies namin sobrang excited lang maglaro at di naman talaga ‘yun yung usual game namin,” said Pasaol when asked what went wrong in their loss. (“We just fell short. I guess our rookies were just overexcited to play and that is not really our style of play.”)

It’s just one game and loss, but Pasaol did all the right things expected from a leader on and off the court. Reeling from the exodus of former UE pillars Renz Palma, Bonbon Batiller and Edgar Charcos, Pasaol provides the stability that the young Red Warriors need to feed off of.

If the previous reports on his rising excellence are to be followed, fans can expect a few Warrior upsets as the new season moves along. – Rappler.com