University of the Philippines guard Rey Remogat remained optimistic despite the Fighting Maroons suffered their first defeat of the UAAP Season 89 men’s basketball tournament against the National University Bulldogs.
Rather than dwell on the setback, Remogat said UP can use the loss as an early lesson with plenty of time remaining in the season.
“Oo, still grateful pa rin ako kasi nangyari ito hindi sa Final Four. Nangyari ito hindi sa championship. So, lesson learned. Sa Monday, babalik kami sa ensayo. Kailangan namin mas galingan, kailangan namin mas mag-focus. So, masakit matalo, pero tapos na iyun,” Remogat said.
He also expressed relief that the team came out of the game without injuries and emphasized the importance of learning from the experience before the crucial stages of the tournament.
“So, maging thankful pa rin kami, wala na-injury sa amin. Maging thankful kami dahil hindi nangyari ito ng Final Four o championship. So, sobrang grateful pa rin na iyung lesson na ibinigay sa amin ng Lord masyadong maaga,” he added.
Remogat said UP still has ample opportunities to improve and work toward its goal for the season.
“Marami pa kaming pwedeng ma-improve, pwedeng gawin para makuha pa rin iyung championship,” he said.
Remogat also acknowledged that NU’s defense made it difficult for him to find his rhythm offensively, particularly from the field.
He refused, however, to treat his shooting struggles as something unusual in basketball.
“Siguro, ganun ng basketball eh. Basketball is not a perfect game rin. So, hindi naman laging maganda iyung laro. Hindi naman laging malakas,” Remogat said.
“Darating iyung time na ma-figure out ka nila eh. Siguro, nagawa nila iyung trabaho nila. Pero, iyan ‘yan. Back to the drawing board. Back to practice para sa susunod,” he added.
Despite his individual struggles and UP’s loss, Remogat remained thankful that the setback came early enough in the campaign for the team to make corrections.
“And I’m still grateful and thankful na ngayon nangyari ito. And thankful ako na masyado pa malayo para maraming pa kaming pwedeng trabaho ko para sa season na ito,” he said.
Remogat also praised Arvie Poyos for stepping up offensively against NU, saying the young guard has consistently shown that he is ready when the opportunity comes.
“Si Arvie naman ano iyan eh, lagi naman ready iyan. Iyung trust ko naman, hindi lang sa kanya. Lahat iyan, sa teams, sa coaches, lahat iyan,” Remogat said.
He added that Poyos’ talent and understanding of UP’s system helped him make an impact despite the team’s defeat.
“So, magandang ilalaro niyan dahil, syempre, stiff sa system. And talagang talented iyung bata. So, grateful ako na alam iyan. Naging maganda ang laro niya ngayon,” Remogat said.
“Natalo kami pero, doon pa rin tayo sa brighter side na nakita namin iyung si Arvie na maganda ang nakita,” he added. (Adrian Co)
