Rebuilding UST aims for modest goal in Season 81
DESPITE winning one championship each in his rookie coaching seasons with two previous schools, head coach Aldin Ayo is moderating expectations as he guides a rebuilding University of Santo Tomas (UST) in Season 81 University Athletics Association of the Philippines (UAAP) men’s basketball tournament.
Ayo, who led his alma mater Letran to an NCAA crown in 2015 and steered La Salle to a UAAP title in 2016, moved to España from Taft
- ish with the Green Archers last year.
With a UST team that just came off its worst performance in recent times, however, Ayo is expecting the Tigers’ growl will not be as loud again as it was in the past. “We’re not thinking of the results.
We’re just thinking of what we have to do. We’ll just do what we are supposed to do,” said Ayo, who is looking to preach patience and discipline as he instills his signature “mayhem defense” to his new men.
UST hardly avoided a winless campaign last season as it snapped a 13-game losing skid by prevailing in its last game.
The past two seasons under muchmaligned mentor Boy Sablan had been a nightmare for the Tigers, who only managed to win four out of 28 games. Ayo even saw the debris of those two disastrous years upon his arrival at España.
“When we started last January, it was ground zero. We didn’t even have a ball. We then need to pursue the players who planned to leave. Before we recruited and held tryouts, we pursued those players. Fortunately, we convinced them to stay,” recalled Ayo.
The 40-year old tactician persuaded skipper Marvin Lee, Zachy Huang, Enrique Caunan and Cameroonian center Steve Akomo, among others to stay while Renzo Subido and Embons Bonleon returned to UST after playing in the PBA Developmental League.
But Ayo was not able to keep Jordan Sta. Ana, Regie Boy Basibas, Oliver De Guzman, Christian Garcia, Carlo Escalambre, MR Romero, Joco Macasaet,
Zamora of Arellano High School.
Ayo knows that UST remain undermanned and undersized heading into the UAAP tourney. But unlike his previous
conduct-
ed training camps in preparation for 8th place ( last) on a 1- 13 record Marvin Lee, Zachy Huang, Enrique Caunan, Steve Akomo, Renzo Subido ( returnee), Embons Bonleon ( returnee)
Jordan Sta. Ana, Christian Garcia, Oliver De Guzman, Carlo Escalambre CJ Cansino, Joshua Marcos, Toby Agustin
it was reported that legendary trainer Emanuel Steward visited Spinks in his dressing room Steward, Spinks was so scared of Tyson he didn’t want to leave the dressing room. Steward swore that he had never True enough, Tyson bludgeoned a vis
Tyson was the epitome of the fearless warrior during his prime, but he was actually bullied as a kid and underwent counselling to conquer his fears.
Cus D’Amato, who trained a young Tyson and also served as his legal guard - losophies to toughen him up mentally. D’Amato was able to convince a young Tyson that fear is just an exaggeration of the threat in front of him; that before tricks and create imaginations that his than him. But once the bell rings, the imaginations dissipate when a boxer realizes that the opponent in front of him is just like everyone else.
Simply put, D’Amato convinced Tyson to take full control of the reality in front of him. Tyson would later claim that his boxing success was “90% psychological.”
George Foreman was another boxer who was looked upon as fearless in the ring. But underneath his fearsome visage, Foreman had a fragile psyche that his handlers tried to protect at all cost. This meant matches during breaks in training camp. Foreman was led to believe by his handlers way into his impregnable armor.
After Foreman cannibalized heavy Norton, his former manager Dick Sadler proudly exclaimed: “I created a monster!”
Lo and behold, when Foreman was stung by Muhammad Ali in 1974, Big George’s psyche crumbled like a deck of cards. Ali’s thunderbolt right hand did not just knock Foreman out; it drilled the concept of fear straight into his psyche. Foreman was never the same fighter and the fear of losing again drastically affected his performances in the ring. In 1977, Foreman retired from boxing after he lost to Jimmy Young, a guy whose punches couldn’t topple a sandcastle. Foreman became a preacher and it took him a decade to conquer his fears and develop genuine mental toughness. He returned to boxing in 1987 and regained the heavyweight tle in 1994. a nutshell, the enemy additional h a s
can ti- In fear is within; the
“foe” a boxer to deal with. It readily consume a boxer if he plays the role of a willing accomplice. But as Tyson proved, a boxer who conquers his fears stands to be rewarded with immeasurable courage.