MANILA, Philippines – Ateneo tactician Tab Baldwin and UST mentor Aldin Ayo may be on the opposite ends of the brewing 82nd UAAP cage wars but the rivalry would not stop them from heaping praises to each other.
They believe they bring the best out of each other every game and in the process, they notch the coaching level higher in the collegiate ranks and in the Philippine basketball as a whole.
“I just have so much respect for him (Aldin) and the way he does his job and you know he’s a blessing for Philippine basketball, for the UAAP,” said Baldwin.
Being the champs, the Eagles are the undisputed favorites. But they were tested early this season as the feisty Tigers dominated them for the most part before the Eagles escaped with a 71-70 decision.
“There’s a lot of learnings for us from this game. This is going to make us a lot better basketball team because Aldin’s team has a way of doing that. They have a way of finding your weaknesses and, I’ve coached against him enough to know that,” Baldwin pointed out. “Aldin always has a couple of tactical things up his sleeve.”
Ayo, a champion coach both in the NCAA (Letran) and in the UAAP (La Salle), has the same props to offer on the former Gilas mentor who is best known for towing New Zealand all the way to the semis of the FIBA World Championship in 2002.
“Nothing but respect for Coach Tab. He made the UAAP better. He raised the level of competition. He made the players better. Not only his players, but the other players. He made the coaches better,” said Ayo.