Tigers Basketball back in action for UNIGAMES-Dumaguete

 

After a two- year disappearance in UNIGAMES ’08, ‘09

By Ryan E. Gantalao

Negros Oriental State University Tigers Basketball Team set back anew in the annual Philippine National Games (UNIGAMES) Basketball League last October 24-30, 2010 in Dumaguete City, after their two-year disappearance in the said National Collegiate Event.

It can be noted that the NORSU Tigers Basketball Team was excluded in the list of NORSU delegates for the UNIGAMES in the past two years because the players weren’t competitive enough to play in the National Tournament.
The said 2-year exclusion was due to the Tiger’s poor performance in the 2008 Governor’s Cup (Champions League) where the Team did not even qualified in the semi-finals, while in 2009, the players were given another ‘cool down’ year because of attitude tribulations.

However, last October, despite another year of exclusion of the NORSU Basketball Team in the semi-finals for the Governor’s Cup this year, Physical and Athletic Director Robeleo Padernal gave the Tigers Team a ‘go signal’ to play for the UNIGAMES 2010.

Padernal said that sending the players to play for the national event will be a ‘big help’ for them to develop their basketball abilities and to develop their confidence when playing against other dominant universities in the country.

He added that this is also a ‘good way’ to further enhance their skills in the sport since practice sessions is far different from the real game.

He added that “this is a way of exposing the athletes in the real game” and to help them earn new techniques in playing the game from their opponents that came from different parts of the country.

Sought for his reaction about the in-game results, Padernal said that he is ‘glad’ about it because the Tigers gave a ‘good fight’ in every game.

In the bottom line, Padernal is expecting that the players learned a lot from their games against other dominant institutions across the country, and that the ‘exposure’ given to them will of big help in the future games.