Ateneo coach Tab Baldwin remains optimistic of his stalwarts despite the team’s lackluster performance in the first round of the UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball tournament.

Baldwin said they are not entirely focusing on the results but on the growth of the team, particularly on developing the maturity of his young players.

“Nobody’s gonna hide the fact that it was a horrendous, difficult first round. So we try not to focus entirely on results. It would be a little exploiting if I said that getting a result all of a sudden makes everything okay, but it really doesn’t,” he said.

But the Blue Eagles are slowly rising from the ashes. After a dismal 1-6 record at the end of the first round, the Katipunan-based squad picked up back-to-back wins at the expense of National University, 70-68, and University of Santo Tomas, 67-64, to improve its record to 3-6.

They are now tied with Adamson and Far Eastern University at fifth to seventh, and are only one game behind fourth-running UST.

Despite this mindset, Baldwin said they are not taking every victory for granted.

“It’s always a joyous occasion when we get a good result because we would have been focused on loftier goals,” he said.

“So no, we’re not satisfied. We like the results. We’ll be focused on our problems and areas that need improvement,” he added.

The Blue Eagles gun for their third straight win on Wednesday, Oct. 23, when they face the struggling Adamson Falcons at the Mall of Asia Arena.