Adamson University star Cedrick Manzano. Photo from UAAP Media.MANILA — Adamson University defied expectations and still went on to end their UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball campaign with a Final 4 appearance.

Despite at one point sitting at 3-7 in the team standings, the Soaring Falcons managed to stay afloat by winning four of their last five games in the eliminations, with their latest coming against the University of the East last Wednesday.

This allowed the Nash Racela-mentored team to earn the fourth and final semifinals seat, and Cedrick Manzano was glad that they were able to shut off the noise from their doubters.

“Sobrang saya pa rin kasi nakapasok kami dito,” said Manzano right after their 70-55 loss on Saturday against De La Salle University.

READ: La Salle cruises past Adamson to set up Finals rematch with UP

“Yung bashers kasi, motivation namin yun. ‘Di nila alam na makakapasok kami, at akala nila number eight kami. Pero ‘di kami hanggang doon lang, pang Final 4 kami,” he continued.

However, Manzano, who had 13 points and nine rebounds against the Green Archers, emphasized that all credit must be given to his head coach who helped them unlock their potential this year.

“Napapalabas yung niya laro namin,” he said. “Yung paano siya mag handle ng player, isa yun sa factor sa kung bakit lumalabas yung talent namin. Kahit ‘di man sa court, kahit sa labas, fatherly din siya, at malaking tulong siya sa amin.”

Racela, while grateful for their semis appearance, still held his players accountable for how they performed against La Salle.
Adamson University head coach Nash Racela. Photo from UAAP Media.“Entering the Final 4 is really an achievement for us,” Racela said. “Pero entering the Final 4 was the highlight, but suddenly, bumaba na kami. So sabi ko nga, that should be a learning sa program. Anything can happen, so tuloy dapat yung laban. Hopefully, we learn from this experience.”

Adamson U fell by as much as 27 against the defending champions, with the Soaring Falcons even only scoring by six points in the second quarter. But for Racela, what should be looked at is their overall performance this year and not how they competed against La Salle.

“That’s what this season tells us, that we are doing the right things,” the UAAP champion mentor, whose team just fell short of entering the semis in Season 86, pointed out.

Last year, Adamson fell against Ateneo de Manila University in the playoff for fourth spot, which is why Racela remained upbeat about how things turned out for them in Season 87.

“Hopefully, mas tuloy pa yung aming programa. This is a process. We entered the Final 4, now we wanna move forward to greater things. This is the first step, and sabi namin kanina na we take another step. If it’s available, we should take it.”

Manzano, who will be playing his last year in San Marcelino in Season 88, also shared the same optimism as his mentor.

“Expect natin na next season, mas gigil pa kami na hindi lang Final 4 yung gusto namin. Gusto naming mag Finals,” he said.

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