MANILA, Philippines - Makasaysayan ang taong 2014 para sa mga Bulldogs ng National University.
Winakasan ng Bulldogs ang kanilang 60-taong pagkauhaw sa korona matapos magkampeon sa men's basketball tournament ng 77th season ng University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) noong Oktubre.
Makaraang talunin ang five-time champions na Ateneo Blue Eagles sa Final Four ay hinarap naman ng Bulldogs ang mga Tamaraws ng Far Eastern University sa best-of-three championship series.
Kinuha ng FEU ang Game One, 75-70, bago rumesbak ang NU sa kanilang mga panalo sa Game Two, 62-47, at Game Three, 75-59, para tuluyan nang angkinin ang UAAP crown sa unang pagkakataon matapos noong 1954.
“I'm so happy to be part of history,” sabi ni head coach Eric Altamirano sa kanyang mga Bulldogs.
Ang Sampaloc-based cagers ang naging kauna-unahang No. 4 seed na sumikwat sa titulo sa Final Four era.
“We lost a lot of players from last year, not just Ray Ray Parks and Sean Mbe but also Denice Villamor, Robin Rono and Joeff Javillonar so we have to find a way to win. In the summer, we really tried to look for identity and we found that on defense. It's kind of unique we showed our teamwork on defense,” ani Altamirano, nasa kanyang pang-limang season sa NU.
Nakahanay ni Altamirano sina Baby Dalupan, Joel Banal at Norman Black bilang ikaapat na coach na nanalo ng PBA at UAAP championship.
Nakasama rin si Altamirano kina Arturo Valenzona at Fritz Gaston bilang tanging mga players na nakakuha ng UAAP title bilang player at head coach.
Sa kanya namang huling college game, humakot si Glenn Khobuntin ng 10 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists at 1 steal, habang nagdagdag si Kyle Drexter Neypes, dating naglaro sa UST, ng 8 points at 4 boards.
“Maraming nagsasabi na dapat hindi na lang ako umalis ng UST,” wika ni Neypes. “Lahat naman yan pagsubok. Sipag at tiyaga lang talaga. Ngayon, champion na kami. Masaya rin 'yung ending di ba?”
Nabigo mang makatikim ng UAAP title bilang isang player, nakamit naman ito ni Jeff Napa bilang assistant coach ng Bulldogs.
“During our time,” ani Napa. “We went from the worst to the worst kung posible man yun. Nag-Final Four din kami pero after that bagsak ulit.”
Naglaro si Napa para kina coaches Sonny Paguia at Manny Dandan bago naging assistant kina Eric Gonzales at Altamirano.
Iginiya ni Napa ang Bullpups sa dalawang UAAP juniors championships.
Para sa susunod na 78th UAAP season, kumpiyansa si businessman/sportsman Hans Sy, bumili sa NU limang taon na ang nakararaan, na makakamit ng Bulldogs ang kanilang back-to-back championship.
“We played better with less pressure on us. We had no real stars to begin with. You tell me, were there any hotly recruited players on this team? None. So maybe it was better this way. They relied on one another,” sabi ni Sy ng SM Group of Companies.Hinirang naman si Kiefer Ravena ng Ateneo Blue Eagles bilang Most Valuable Player sa men's basketball tournament.
Samantala, kinumpleto naman ng NU Lady Bulldogs ang 16-game sweep na tinampukan ng 2-0 dominasyon sa FEU Lady Tamaraws sa kanilang best-of-five titular showdown.
Kinilala si Gemma Miranda bilang MVP matapos igiya ang Lady Bulldogs sa kauna-unahan nitong UAAP women's crown.