MANILA, Philippines — Far Eastern University Tamaraws head coach Sean Chambers lauded the performance of rookie foreign student athlete Mohamed Konateh, who hauled down 26 rebounds to help his squad pull off a 76-72 overtime win against the Adamson Falcons in their UAAP Season 87 clash last Saturday, October 12.
Konateh has been the king of the boards, averaging 16.14 rebounds per game in the tournament.
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He showcased his rebounding prowess in their first match of second round, pulling down 17 defensive and nine offensive boards — one short of the record set by former Ateneo big man Ange Kouame and ex-La Salle star Justine Baltazar — to go with 13 points.
Chambers, after the game, said that he is happy with how Konateh has grown as a rookie inside the court.
“Mo’s my favorite player right now. The guy played 45, 43 minutes. He doesn’t complain. He works hard. I’m so proud of his progression. He’s only going to get better,” Chambers said.
“To think that Mo’s a rookie and honestly, I don’t think we have anybody that works harder in practice than Mo. He’s so humble. He’s so quiet,” he added.
The former decorated PBA import has also been seeing similarities between himself and Konateh.
Konateh, for his part, relished learning from Chambers.
”I got to learn a lot from [coach]. I follow what he says. He said ‘Mo, do this do this’, and I did so I can get better everyday,” Konateh said.
With the win against the Falcons, FEU is now holding a 2-6 win-loss record.
The Tamarraws will ride their winning momentum when they face the National Universtiy Bulldogs on Wednesday, October 16, at the Mall of Asia Arena. — Brent Sagre, intern