‘110 percent’ effort needed for SWU-Phinma in finals battle with UV

Cebu City, Philippines—For the Southwestern University (SWU)-Phinma Cobras, their chances of winning the title over the defending champion University of the Visayas (UV) Green Lancers would depend on the efforts the players will show on the court on game day.

SWU-Phinma big man Dyll Roncal knows perfectly what this means.

“For us to beat them, we always have this mindset to play 110 percent,” Roncal told CDN Digital moments after the Green Lancers erased a twice-to-win disadvantage and ousted the higher-ranked University of Cebu (UC) on Saturday, November 16, 2019. 

Read: UV rallies past UC to advance to Cesafi men’s basketball finals

110 percent. Not just 100. 

That means the Cobras should give more than what their used to in order to stand a chance against the 13-time Cesafi men’s basketball champions.

“We feel we are the challenger. As we all know, UV is a strong team and they are always exposed in the finals,” Roncal added.

The finals starts on Monday, November 18, 2019, at the Cebu Coliseum.

Some of SWU-Phinma’s players are already excited about the match-up, confident that they stand a chance against the powerhouse team.

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After all, SWU-Phinma did beat UV in the Partner’s Cup finals last summer. The Cobras actually swept the Green Lancers in that best-of three finals.

“We beat them at that time so we can use that as our motivation to help us remember that we can actually win a game against UV,” said SWU-Phinma team captain William Polican.

But the Cobras know the regular season is an entirely different ballgame.

“I’m excited and a bit nervous,” said SWU-Phinma’s flashy wingman Sir Shaquille Imperial. “We will have to double time in our defense and offense [to stand a chance.]”

The good thing going for SWU-Phinma is that it is well rested as it last played last Tuesday, November 12, when it beat the University of San Carlos (USC) in its own semis affair. 

Being the top seed, it only took one game for the Cobras to advance, and they made sure there wasn’t going to be any more rubbermatch with the dangerous Warriors.

Polican believes preparation will also be a key in the finals series.

“We just have to stick to our system,” said Polican. “Just focus on our game and give our best for the game that we love.”

Coach Mike Reyes, too, has already come up with key points the team need to focus on against UV. 

“We have to limit their offensive rebounds because that is one of their main strengths,” Reyes said.