University of the Philippines head coach Goldwin Monteverde refused to get ahead of himself as the Fighting Maroons stood as the only perfect team in three games. 

Though it was clear as day that the Fighting Maroons have proved themselves a strong Final Four contender this season, Monteverde remained wary of the tough competition and said it was too early to tell. 

“We’re really happy with this win. Pero siyempre we have to keep ourselves level headed like third game pa lang ng season to. We just have to keep improving pa rin,” Monteverde said. 

“Kami naman start pa lang ng season, everything na [panalong] maiipon mo that’s good for the team. But we have to keep reminding ourselves that this is just the third game. So, focus pa rin kami in what we work on. We won [our third straight game] pero we still have lapses that we need to work on,” he said. 

Monteverde also insisted that while UP has come out the better side in all of its previous matches, there remains a handful of areas to improve and get better at. 

“Definitely marami pa. Ganu’n naman talaga as we go along. There’s always things to improve on. Lagi namin gagawin what will make us better as a team,” he said. 

The UP side has seemingly won the recruitment battle in the offseason following the signing of Francis Lopez, who has been nothing short of consistent alongside reigning MVP Malick Diouf. 

In as many games, the rookie and veteran duo have managed to power the Fighting Maroons to a dominant start. 

Additionally, CJ Cansino has been a huge boost in UP’s offensive production since his recovery from a torn ACL. 

The Fighting Maroons’ road to redemption resumes against the winless Far Eastern University Tamaraws on Wednesday, Oct. 11, at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.