COACH Yuri Escueta knows a thing or two about what it takes to win titles in the NCAA, after all he’s won twice in four seasons with the most successful school in the tournament in San Beda.
And their crazy game against the Emilio Aguinaldo College Generals — a game where they had things under control early in the fourth, fell apart before ultimately walking away with the tough 89-86 win in the end — is the perfect teaching moment for this current batch of Red Lions under Escueta’s tutelage.
Up 85-74 with seven minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, the Red Lions never made a basket again but luckily held on to an 89-86 win thanks to the steady hands of RC Calimag and some key stops in the end.
READ:Clutch RC Calimag tows San Beda past EAC in tense dogfight
For Escueta, there’s no need to overcomplicate things, if the Red Lions would want to defend their title against a stacked deck of challenges this year, they have to be tougher and match the intensity of their opponents.
“They pressed our team after made baskets so that’s something we knew coming into this game but it’s different when you’re inside. We just have to toughen up. I think we were too soft in the fourth quarter when we were up and it’s something that these guys have to learn,” Escueta said.
“In the NCAA no lead is safe, especially when teams try to step on the gas, pressure hard, play those passing lanes, play tough, play rough,” he continued.
“It’s something they have to be able to embrace that physicality, that roughness. It’s our fault that we weren’t able to match our toughness nila.”
For the 41-year-old mentor, the stigma around NCAA — about the physicality, about the tough nature, about the grit and hunger of all the players here, they’re all true and he meant that as the ultimate compliment.
This is a league that doesn’t respect talent. It doesn’t respect names. It doesn’t respect the hype and the views on social media. It doesn’t respect whether you’re a five-star recruit from abroad, or a young walk-in tryout from far-flung provinces who just took the chance of leaving their homes in the hopes of a better future by playing in Manila.
What this league rewards is toughness. It’s mental fortitude. It rewards those who play like they want it more.
“Sabi ko nga sa players ko e, ang NCAA whoever wants it more, whoever plays harder, who plays with a lot of effort, usually gets the W,” Escueta said.
“It doesn’t matter who you’re playing. It doesn’t matter who’s on our team kahit na five star recruit pa yan, pag yan nakalaban ng bisaya na taga EAC, hindi aatrasan ng taga EAC yan,” he continued.
“Yun ang sinasabi ko sa kanila. Walang english english dito, walang taga-tagalog dito, sa basketball patapangan at patigasan.”
And that’s what he’ll always remind his players moving forward, especially as they return to their brackets still in danger of being in a twice-to-win disadvantage come the playoffs.
“Every win is very important right now. You can see how close our bracket is, we’re one game behind the number two spot, but we’re at the fourth spot so that’s how close and how important every game is,” Escueta shared.
“We’ll take this win, we’ll take it to the final stretch and again we have to be ready for tougher games ahead. Get every win we can.”
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