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Basketball
Nash Racela glad to see Adamson's maturity after first round stumble
Nash Racela glad to see Adamson's maturity after first round stumble
By Carlo Anolin
Adamson head coach Nash Racela could not hide the fact that he is proud of what his wards have become after getting their second straight win in the UAAP Season 84.
This is a big deal for a team that has fought seven close games out of nine in a very fast-paced season.
And sure it brought the matured versions of themselves in a span of a month, something that Racela would like to commend as far as the Soaring Falcons are concerned.
"Those games had an effect dito sa... not just the first two games of the second round but sa remaining games pa," said the one-time UAAP champion coach after Adamson's 62-55 win over National University. "These players, our players they learned through experience. That's something I realized. That's why they're coming out better now in the second round."
The only time that Adamson played with a huge gap was against the winless University of the East, 82-66, last March 29 and the undefeated reigning champion Ateneo, 78-47, last March 31.
The Soaring Falcons have yet to meet the aforementioned teams in the second round.
Even Racela himself admitted that he's learning along with his wards and vowed to show a better performance in the next couple of games.
One of the main points addressed by Racela is how Adamson star Jerom Lastimosa, who is so far the leader in scoring with an average of 15.0, embraced not only the system but also the trust of his teammates.
This was earlier pointed out by Racela and somehow Lastimosa and the Falcons learned how to adapt as fast as they can given the first round stumble, ending at seventh place with a 1-6 record.
But after back-to-back wins, Adamson brought itself back to the picture and figured in a three-way tie with University of Santo Tomas and Far Eastern University. These three teams hold a 3-6 slate.
These factors are a plus for Racela and he couldn't be happier.
"Actually they deserve -- 'yong mga wins because they don't give up regardless," said the former PBA coach. "And this is something that, as a coach, I'm really, really proud of kasi 'yon na nga e, kahit anong sitwasyon nandyan lang sila, lumalaban sila. And that's what you want as a coach."