Posts tagged basketball

It’s not a secret that I love watching UAAP basketball—-and covering it. I’m part of a team of young writers and photographers who aim to document the on court and off court scenes in various sports leagues in the country. I looooove working with the FCF people (Ronin, Ericka, Vyn, Andrew, Justin…everyone)! :) Everyone’s so creative, passionate, and fun to be with! But more about them in another entry. :)

At the end of UAAP Season 74, we worked on a feature that involved the ballers in a different way: We talked to them, and asked them if they’re willing to open up and talk to the FCF readers in the form of as-told-to stories. Thankfully, they were very game! I personally love this feature because it’s more intimate and personal than usual. And so, I present Fullcourtfresh.com’s Class of 2011:

The Graduating Players

Young Guns

The Imports

Non-Freshie Rookies

The Next Generation

Dynamic Duos

Court Heartthrobs

Hope you enjoyed! For more insightful features and tons of great photos, check out fullcourtfresh.com regularly. :)

I can make this either short and sweet, or long and dramatic. Okay, I’m going with short and sweet, because my EA duties miss me so much already:)

Why do you support the UP Fighting Maroons Men’s Basketball Team?

I get that question a lot, both from UP people and from outsiders, when they find out that I like watching the UAAP and cheering for the Maroons.

My answer? Because I’m from UP (2006-27250, Graduate ako ng UP Mass Comm :)), and they’re our team. No matter how many times they lose, or by how many points they lose, I will still cheer them on. I believe that they can win any game—no matter who they are up against.

Okay, I won’t lie. I get disappointed when they lose, especially by a big margin—but it’s not because I hate the fact that they lose, but because I know they are capable of winning and that they could’ve done more. My disappointment only lasts for a few minutes though, because I know they will do their best to bounce back (even if it doesn’t always translate to wins, the effort is there, and that’s what’s important).

It annoys me whenever people pick on the men’s basketball team. “Okay lang talo sa basketball; cheerdance na lang!” “You know, if [insert name of player from another school here] was chosen to be/ is in the team, mananalo tayo eh.” “Wala, lalamang lang yan sa first half, matatalo din yan.” Oh, and my ultimate favorite: Blaming a certain player for a loss. Perfect ba kayo? Try nyo kayo dun sa court, and let’s see how well you’ll perform. Okay, it’s a given that the Maroons need to work on composure, consistency, and poise (and they are working on it). They’re a young team; I’m not making excuses for their lapses, there are things they need to improve on, and they still have along way to go. But can’t we support them in their journey?

I understand why the UP community can be apathetic when it comes to the basketball team. UP is academic-centered, not sports-centered (and the population is so diverse that you really can’t force anyone to be this or that), and putting into play the Uses and Gratifications Theory, there must be a reward in exchange of the support (read: wins). But I also always wonder if we can try the other way around: to give support even if there are no wins. Just because.

In all fairness to the alumni, they always come in full force to the games. I also know people who have so much passion for the team, and I applaud them for that (they pour time and effort into making banners for the players and so much more). But I think it would also be nice if the students can come out and cheer for the team (I think now, we’re at 50-50 max: 50% believers, 50% naysayers). Or at least be there in spirit… or just simply believe and give the team a chance.

I long for the day when people will watch the UP games not just because they’re required to, not just because they have a crush on a particular player, but because they want to show their support to the TEAM. All 16 of those guys chose to be in UP: even if they weren’t offered cars, condos, or huge allowances (and even if the gym is so old school). And that, to begin with, is a good enough reason to cheer them on. They come out to play every time, to represent UP the best they could (come on, it’s not that easy to play in a jam-packed coliseum, especially when you’re the underdogs).

I’m not rationalizing their losses, I’m just saying that we should give the men’s basketball team a chance—because they’re the UP Maroons, they’re our team. Some people like to use the term “fan” (fan girl, fan boy) to refer to themselves. Nothing wrong with that, but through keen observation, I realized that not all fans are believers (but that’s another story altogether). So I’d like to say I’m not a fan, I’m a believer. And if you’re from UP, I think you should be too. It’s about time! :)

P.S. This applies to all the teams: from swimming to volleyball; fencing to chess (apologies, I don’t have all the team sports memorized).

P.P.S. It also took me some time to form such an opinion about the basketball team (I used to not care about them too!). After meeting a couple of people, I was convinced that this is a team that’s worth supporting. The Maroons are some of the most down-to-earth UAAP players on and off court, and they really want to prove that they’re worth supporting.

P.P.S I’m sure there are those who will argue that the UAAP is not a national issue, and that UP should spend more time on the usual topics. But hello, it wouldn’t hurt to address this one too! :))