Naveen Ganglani
A DIFFERENT SHADE. Franz Pumaren and his Falcons will face DLSU for the first time in the UAAP this weekend. File photo by Josh Albelda/Rappler
MANILA, Philippines – How would you feel if for the first time in 7 years, you were to see your ex-boyfriend or ex-girlfriend with whom you had great times on the opposite side of the room?
In basketball terms, that may be the case for Franz Pumaren when his Adamson Soaring Falcons take on the DLSU Green Archers this weekend.
"Of course, it's going to be weird," Pumaren admitted on Wednesday, September 21, following the Falcons' win over the NU Bulldogs. "I'll be seeing old friends... we just have to keep the game close."
Wearing (navy) blue instead of green for the first time in his UAAP coaching career, Pumaren's tenure at Adamson is off to a good start. The Falcons have won 3 of their first 4 games in UAAP Season 79, and the latest victory over the Bulldogs was against a team some expect to make the finals.
But on Saturday, Adamson faces a different kind of beast. La Salle is undefeated at 4-0 early in the UAAP season, living up to the lofty expectations placed on the team pre-season as the consensus favorite to win the championship.
"They're a hands-down favorite," Pumaren said about the Aldin Ayo-coached club. "If you just look at their line-up, I think they're quite deep one to 16. It's just one of those scheduled games that we have to play them."
Adamson will have to find a way to limit MVP candidates Ben Mbala (19.3 PPG, 17.0 RPG) and Jeron Teng (19.0 PPG, 3.5 RPG), as well as the rest of the team's solid supporting cast.
The Soaring Falcons may also have to deal with fatigue, since the game against DLSU will be their third UAAP contest in just 7 days.
"But we're not going to use this as an alibi or excuse; coming off a killer schedule this week – we played last Saturday, we played Wednesday, we [play] Saturday – we just have to dig deep for us to compete with the powerhouse La Salle," Pumaren said.
The win against NU, however, indicates Adamson is already progressing even quicker than the coach anticipated under the Pumaren era. Despite being the younger roster, it were the Falcons who looked like the more poised and veteran club down the stretch in the fourth period against the Bulldogs, who committed multiple turnovers to seal their loss.
Papi Sarr had his best game of the season in the win, finishing with 13 points and 17 boards. As an individual, he'll face the biggest challenge so far in his two-year UAAP career when he matches up against Mbala on Saturday.
But don't tell him that.
"I don’t want to talk about the matchup, I just want to have fun," the big man said.
"I trust my team. We're going to play as a team, not individual players. So I don't want to talk about the matchup. I want to focus on that and have fun."
Pumaren, though, made sure to say with a laugh that, "according to [Sarr's] mom, he's better. Better player, better looking."
On Saturday, there won't be as many jokes, especially during game time. Pumaren's 11-year run as DLSU's head coach included 5 championships (6 if you count the one taken away in 2004) and countless memories. But now, he's in the opening stages of trying to establish similar feats for Adamson.
The Falcons already faced the Green Archers in this summer's Filoil tournament and lost 98-88, but this time, their game is going to be in the UAAP, where their head coach earned a solid reputation for being a competitive and successful tactician.
So despite coming in as the underdog against La Salle, Adamson's not likely to easily fold.
"I've seen [La Salle]. They have all the materials. I think they're the favorite team even from the very start. We'll see," said Pumaren.
"It's going to be a fun game. I hope we can sustain our run, keep the game close, and we'll see what will happen." – Rappler.com
