Franz Pumaren carving unbeaten Adamson’s team-first identity

MANILA, Philippines – Leave it to a multi-titled UAAP coach to pump new life into a lifeless collegiate team.

Just in his third season with the Adamson Soaring Falcons, head coach Franz Pumaren has taken the former cellar-dweller into two straight Final Four appearances. And by the looks of things in the UAAP Season 81, they are on their way to a third.

Moments after the Falcons moved up to 3-0 by way of a 79-71 win over the UST Growling Tigers, Pumaren shared that it is all due to a team-first mindset he has instilled in his wards.

“One thing I can say is my bench players proved they are capable of stepping up,” Pumaren shared in the post-game presser.

“Papi [Sarr’s] not 100%. He just played through his sickness. Same with Sean [Manganti], his foot is bothering him. But in spite of them having a bad [day] because of various illnesses and injuries, I think this is one game that we were able to prove ourselves that we just play as a team.”

Indeed, Adamson’s usual go-to guys, apart from Jerrick Ahanmisi who scored 20, were total non-factors.

Sarr only tallied 4 points and 7 rebounds in 20 minutes while Manganti bottomed out with a 0-of-7 shooting after a career-high 27 in the previous win.

Adamson then got their scoring and defense from unlikely sources, such as rookie Vince Magbuhos who poured in a career-high 15 points on a 7-of-9 (78%) shooting with 4 steals to boot.

Key reserve Simon Camacho recorded 9 points and 8 boards while Kristian Bernardo chipped in 7 markers, all in the second half, with 5 boards.

“I guess, if you look at our team, except for one or two players, there are no really what you can consider a blue-chip rookie or an outstanding player,” Pumaren said.

“Probably we are successful at this stage because we play as one unit. No individual player can help us win games. It’s gonna be a team effort for us to beat the other teams.”

“Each of our players are beginning to accept their roles,” he added. “They’re beginning to see the whole picture.”

Most notably, the premier example of this team-first style is the defending UAAP champion Ateneo Blue Eagles, whom the Falcons have already defeated in their very first game.

Pumaren added that it’s because of this win that they ramped up their chemistry for their succeeding contests.

“Like what I’ve been stressing to the players, after beating the defending champs, I don’t think there’s gonna be an easy game for us,” he said. “Everybody will test us. Everybody will see if we can handle the pressure.”

Now that the Falcons have the system in place like the Eagles, is a title now also on the horizon?

We’ll just have to wait and see. – Rappler.com