MANILA, Philippines — It's mission accomplished for graduating Ateneo big man Ange Kouame as he steered the Blue Eagles back to the UAAP summit for their fourth championship in five seasons on Monday.
Winning himself the Finals MVP plum in his last year with the Blue Eagles, Kouame now has time to finally get some time to heal a nagging injury.
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Since June 2022, Kouame has been nursing a partial ACL tear and a meniscal sprain which sidelined him for Gilas in the 2022 FIBA Asia Cup.
Now that all is said and done in his collegiate career, Kouame zeroes in on his health.
"Surgery. I'm getting surgery, the rest, I'll leave it to God because only God has answers," said Kouame after the game.
Though hurt, the naturalized big man came up big for the Blue Eagles all season, who bucked all odds to return to UAAP glory.
In the finals, he normed 17.7 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks.
But now that the dust has settled, Kouame admitted he has to put his future hoops plans on the side first as he recovers.
"Because I'm going home tonight, this thing's gonna hurt," Kouame said of the extent of his injury.
Having turned 25 last week, Kouame will no longer be eligible for the Blue Eagles next year. He played four UAAP seasons for Ateneo, winning three championships in the process.