COACH AYO’S ‘HUG’ TO TRATTER, MOTIVATES DLSU TO SWEEP 5TH WIN
By Maxine Louise Lagman
24 September 2016
THE De La Salle University (DLSU) gained a mass of supporters after winning back-to-back games over the past few days. They are tough to beat, especially with a powerhouse team with good defense and offense.
After an exceptional match and bagging their fifth win in the UAAP basketball against the Adamson University (AdU), 91-75 on Saturday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena, some questioned, what pushed this team to greatness?
It seemed DLSU Coach Aldin Ayo has the answer – a hug for his team.
In the last two minutes in the third quarter, Abu Tratter unexpectedly made back-to-back errors. He failed to catch a pass for a potential lay up and he lost control of the ball, also while attending a lay up.
Ayo, instead of shouting at him, welcomed Tratter on the bench with a tight hug. “During the dead ball, I was able to tell Abu, ‘Next play, we’re going to you,'” said Ayo.
Tratter, with the rest of the team, seemed to put on a better game after that. “He makes sure from the first guy to the last, he gives everyone confidence and makes sure that everyone has the courage to go back in the game,” said Tratter.
Tratter finished off with six points and eight rebounds. While Ben Mbala once again led DLSU with 21 points, six rebounds, four steals and three blocks. Jeron Teng and Aljun Melecio added 15 and 13 points, respectively.
Kib Montalbo also did an impressive all-around game for DLSU with 12 points, eight rebounds, six assists and two steals.
AdU’s Jerrick Ahanmisi still led the Falcons with 22 points, but was not enough to conquer the Archers.
Former DLSU Coach Franz Pumaren was not too happy with the way the game turned out, as AdU did not had the chance to close in the game with DLSU.
“I don’t think you have to be a basketball expert to look at the whole picture. It’s just that I think La Salle played their best game of the season, and we played our worst. As simple as that (via spin.ph),” said Pumaren.
DLSU still stays atop UAAP standing with 5-0 and AdU with 3-2 win-loss record.
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FULL GALLERY – #UAAP79 MBT, DLSU Green Archers vs. Adamson Falcons
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