University of the Philippines (UP) has no time to sulk following its 20-point loss to University of Santo Tomas (UST) in Season 88 University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) men’s basketball tournament late Sunday at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion.

Fighting Maroons mentor Goldwin Monterde said although their massive 67-87 loss was truly devastating, they have no choice but to wipe away their tears and set their sights on their next game against Adamson University on Wednesday at the same España venue.

UP hardly looked like the reigning champion against a powerful UST squad reinforced by 6-foot-10 Nigerian rookie Collins Akowe.

In the first half alone, the foreign student-athlete already had 16 points and 11 rebounds, leaving the Fighting Maroons struggling for solutions on how to stop him.

He finished the night with 29 points and 17 rebounds, sending the statement to the league that the Tigers are ready to debunk the speculations that the race to the crown will go down to rivals UP and De La Salle University.

But Monteverde knows that dwelling on the setback will do no good.

“Of course, this is not the start that we have been hoping for. But we need to deal with our next game every time,” said Monteverde, whose wards suffered their first loss to UST after nine consecutive wins. It was also their first opening-day loss since Season 84.

“As I’ve said before, life goes on. After this loss, there will be new games and new challenges. So as a team, we need to prepare well. We need to talk without dwelling too much on that setback.” 

Indeed, it was a night to forget for the Maroons.

Aside from failing to push Akowe, the former Most Valuable Player in the juniors division for National University-Nazareth School, out of his comfort zone, the Fighting Maroons also didn’t draw solid numbers from its starters. 

Mark Belmonte emerged as the leading scorer with 12 points while veteran Harold Alarcon notched 11 markers on a dismal 4-of-16 from the field. Transferee Rey Remogat also had a forgettable debut with only five points and one assist in nearly 10 minutes of action.

Still, Monteverde believes that the setback taught them a lot. After all, they still have 13 matches to prove themselves worthy of defending their title.

“What’s important is our preparation for the next game. If something goes wrong, life goes on. You need to move forward,” Monteverde said.