Somewhere between Roxas Boulevard in Manila and the University of the Philippines Diliman campus in Quezon City, a giddy feeling came over me. All of a sudden, I had a hunch – UP would be champions again that night. I had that same feeling in Season 84. I felt it, so I drove just a bit faster to make sure I’d make it in time before the buzzer sounded.
It was game night, and I was on my way to the viewing party at the University Hotel to watch the UAAP finals between the UP Fighting Maroons and the De La Salle Green Archers. I came from a dinner Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Eli Remolona Jr. hosted for former banking reporters.
The dinner was done by 7 p.m. because he had to head off somewhere. Perhaps the former UP School of Economics professor was going to watch the game, too? I didn’t know for sure.
Gore
At the University Hotel, I could hear the wild cheers of the UP faithful even before I could reach the parking lot.
A former colleague saw me as I rushed to the event and excitedly shared that we were leading with a few minutes left in the game.
UP was going to be champions again. Everyone was feeling it already, at least at that moment that night under the bright stars of the Diliman sky. I stood there watching and felt it too.
And then there was a timeout, so I rushed to the lavatory to heed the call of nature.
But lo and behold, when I went back to the viewing area, the big screen showed that suddenly, Kevin Quiambao had reversed UP’s fate with a tough three-pointer at the two-minute mark and continued to dominate. By the time the buzzer sounded, UP had lost by one damn point.
It was, to say the least, a totally unexpected heartbreak.
That was Game 2, and suddenly, it felt like it would be a repeat of the past two seasons when victory seemed so close but still would not be reached.
I went home sad, disappointed, sentimental and nostalgic all at once. I thought of all those disappointments life brought my way – dreams I wanted so badly but just didn’t get. I thought of all my past heartbreaks – basketball or otherwise.
I found comfort in a fellow Maroon fan, UP alum and colleague, Jerome Morales of Reuters who said that there is still Game 3.
On our Game 2 defeat, he said, life is not just about winning but also about losing and about standing up again after being knocked out.
I also found hope in UP president Angelo “Jijil” Jimenez’s post after the Game 2 defeat: “It’s alright. I love Sundays!”
And so the UP community put its heartbreak aside and showed its support for the UP Men’s Basketball team, the “fightingest” basketball team I’ve ever seen.
Sunday came. I was at the office that day for my usual duty. That afternoon before the game, Sports Editor Nelson Beltran saw me and asked me how I felt: Did I think UP would be champions again?
After getting it wrong in Game 2, I decided not to listen to any hunch this time, I told him. But deep inside, I was fervently hopeful.
True enough, as fate would have it, Game 3 turned out to be one epic redemption night for UP.
It wasn’t just a championship win. It was a victory that showed that UP wasn’t just a Game 1 team; it showed that the Araneta Coliseum curse had been broken and most of all, that the Season 84 championship win wasn’t just a one-time thing.
Fighting Maroons correspondent Cheska Ramos, as quoted in the sports column Simoun Says, summed the Game 3 victory well:
“This is for every season UP wasn’t a contender, for the years of heartbreak when the dream felt so far away. It’s for the magic of Season 84 when JD Cagulangan’s clutch three-pointer ended 36 years of waiting, but it’s also for the pain of Seasons 85 and 86 when it was so close yet just out of reach.”
At the victory party last Tuesday hosted by tycoon and sports patron Robina Gokongwei, a finale group photo ended with a grand, joyous rendition of UP Naming Mahal, reminding us what it means to be UP – to keep fighting and to keep going despite the odds.
Someone asked me why I bother so much about the UAAP games.
Well how could I not? At best, it’s something to cheer about, especially this time amid all the political chaos, the growing corruption in the Marcos administration and the Duterte family’s unraveling.
But most of all, it is a stark reminder that life, as Reuters’ Jerome said, is full of glory and gore, whether we like it or not.
And it is also that, he said, which makes life exciting.
I agree. After all, it is in the struggle to get up again that we find ourselves again and again no matter how many times we get lost. And that perhaps is what it means to be alive in this dizzying and turning world.
Glory
What a glorious season for UP under the leadership of president Jijil.
I offer this piece as my big salute to the UP Fighting Maroons. As Simoun Says, and I quote:
“Til the next game and til the end of time...UP Fight!!!”
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Email: eyesgonzales@gmail.com. Follow her on Twitter @eyesgonzales. Column archives at EyesWideOpen on FB.