UV Lancers seek redemption: Ready to rekindle scathing rivalry with SWU Cobras in 2013 CESAFI season

CEBU, Philippines - Armed with renewed vigor and confidence, the University of the Visayas (UV) Green Lancers seek no less than redemption in the 13th Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. (CESAFI) basketball season that will kick off on August 3 at the Cebu Coliseum.

UV head coach Felix "Donbel" Belano, Jr. unequivocally admitted that at times, they are still haunted by the ghost of that heart-rending loss to Southwestern University (SWU) Cobras in last year's finals but they now consider it a thing of the past as they embark of a new challenge of regaining lost pride and glory for the Visayanian community.

The sweet scent of success was within UV's grasp when the Green Lancers led by 18 points, 63-45, with 7:45 left in the contest.     

But in a bitter twist of fate, they suffered a monumental collapse on the way to suffer a shocking 72-73 loss to the SWU Cobras in the classic finale of their best-of-five final series witnessed by a roaring 12,000-plus crowd on Otober 6, 2012 at the Cebu Coliseum.

The Lancers and their legion of fans were left in funeral silence after they allowed the Cobras to pull what is perhaps the greatest comeback in a basketball championship match in recent memory.

"It was really a painful loss, but we won't dwell much about it," said Belano. "I know that all the trials we have gone through could only make us a better team. What matters most is that we learned our lessons well from that defeat. Aside from finding our weak spot, it also made us realize that no matter how talented a team is, it's still worthless if it doesn't have character."

Aside from character-building, Belano said he is also working on the chemisty and conditioning of his team, believing that these are the essential elements that could be of big help to them in their bid to seize back the coveted championship deprived of them for the past three years.

"The '3 C' philosophy that I am trying to instill in their hearts and minds would be the cornerstone of our campaign this season. It stands for character, chemistry, and conditioning. For me, these are the key ingredients of a highly competitive team," the soft-spoken bench tactician said.

Belano knows beforehand that the path they have to take is not an easy one. Aside from the emergence of a host of foreign cagers, their chief rival SWU Cobras are also getting tougher and mightier.

"Of course, we are looking forward to rekindle our rivaly with SWU but we can't also take the other teams lightly," said Belano, who wrote history in Philippine sports when he was still a pro cager for becoming the first and only Filipino player to record a quadruple-double in a single game.

"Any kind of rivalry is good for the league. It makes the competition more intense, but not to the extent that it would spark any untoward incident," he added, referring to the disgraceful hardcourt melee between the Lancers and the Cobras in an out-of-town match recently in Alcoy south of Cebu. "I hope it won't happen in the CESAFI. Let's just enjoy the game, be humble in victory, and gracious in defeat."

For the upcoming CESAFI cage wars, Belano said his squad his 85 percent ready, even as he also projected that they will come in peak form right in time for the crucial stage of the tournament.

"We still have a lot of things to improve on, but we are prepared and ready to face any challenges that may come along the way. This team has been under my watch for three years already. They're now coachable and I already know how to deal with them, both on and off the court."

Belano is again fortunate to have a luxury of local talents to back up his prized Cameroonian recruits in Steve Cedrick Akomo and Mike Harry Nzensseu. He has a powerful center/forward in reigning MVP Hernal "Wowie" Escocio and a versatile playmaker in John Abad to compliment the likes of Chris Perolino, Raffy Oktobre, Vincent Mendoza, Angelo Babia, Arvie Cabañero, Alfred Codilla, Miko Marquez, and Christian Fajardo.

"I have nothing much to ask for this team. All I want from them is to have discipline, positive attitude and big fighting heart each game," said Belano.

 And the Lancers needed that much especially that they are on mission this season.

"Redemption. That is one of our goals," said Belano. "As we look forward to the new CESAFI season, I would like to thank our UV family for their unwavering support and for the trust and condifence they have in the coaching staff. We may have failed last year, but it's a learning process. It's an added motivation for us to even try harder and give out best shot to bring the championship back to UV." (FREEMAN)