UP Fighting Maroons men’s basketball team ready for UAAP return

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

The University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons men’s basketball team already began their regular bubble training in preparation for the nearing of the halted University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Eager to already get back on the hardwood after two years of collegiate sports inactivity, the UAAP recently laid out their plans to resume their season and eyed the month of February for the return.

Already putting in the work is the entire UP Fighting Maroons basketball team headed by new head coach Goldwin Monteverde.

The former multi-champion high school head coach of the National University (NU) Bullpups who took over the spot of coach Bo Perasol revealed that they have already kicked off their training as early as January.

“We started our small group training last January 10 after the mandatory seven-day quarantine. We were allowed to practice in a team setup just recently,” shared Monteverde.

Currently, the Fighting Maroons are undergoing strict bubble training in their school campus with a total of 23 players gracing their pool.

All the players, coaches, and personnel are being tested by an RT-PCR swab every Monday while an antigen kit is also provided for their weekly testing.

The members of the basketball team are reportedly being housed at the University Hotel while their training sessions are being conducted at the Epsilon Chi Center and College of Human Kinetics (CHK) Gym.

UP is seeking to bounce back after a third-place finish during the last UAAP season and is eager to make another trip to the finals.