...Letting Go of Hatred: An Open Letter to Aljon Mariano...

Dear Aljon Mariano,

'Sup.

I have been a supporter of the UST Growling Tigers since day 1 of my Thomasian days back in 2003. Yes, that time post-four peat when every one on that team was a nobody and we were fighting for pride to not be the last place finisher against UP, NU, and Adamson. When P.E. classes gave out Gen Ad tickets, we don't just have our attendance checked. We stayed to watch the games, win or lose, and raised our fists when the UST Hymn is played.

My dad laughed at me back in '06 when, as a fragile-looking boy, I shouted my lungs out to cheer for the team and looked like I was literally stabbed whenever the opposing team scored. I lose my voice watching the games on TV wherever I am. My passion for this team has never wavered, and it was with great pain that I saw how we lost Game 3. 

This is me as a UST fan.

That is why I was one of the thousands who scorned you for that end of regulation jumper. I cursed you countless times that day, and the days after that. I firmly believed that you sold us out and denied Jeric Teng the chance to end his career on his own terms. 

Understand, sir, that I defended you from critics in Games 1 and 2. You were tasked to guard that hefty beast of a man, Jason Perkins and even the guy they call "The Bear" Norbert Torres. Given your position, I or 99% of the people who bashed you may not even be able to run down the floor after being beat up by those guys in the post. 

And then, six seconds happened. You were clutch last year, we believed that. You were more ruthless than Ryan Buenafe down the stretch of games, that's why we were called "Comeback Kids" last year. You were a huge part of this year's success. But this series was not your series. You had a chance to bounce back for 79 minutes and 54 seconds in games 2 and 3 or whatever your playing time total was. Those six seconds weren't the time for you to bounce back. 

Tonight is Animo Night, a night of celebration for DLSU's championship. It is a night I feel we they shouldn't be having because we were supposed to have raised the trophy last Saturday. But we didn't. And tonight, they'll be having their night.

See, I am now at peace with the fact that it wasn't entirely your fault. Tata had a steal that would've stretched our lead, but fumbled going 1 on 3 on the fastbreak. Almond Vosotros had a real nice fly by move and sunk a shot that he could have missed the way his game was going. Karim tried to do a little too much to get those 2 points back on our end. And in the end, he could've tried to bank it in for two instead of going for all the marbles with a three. Heck, he could've passed it over to Kevin Ferrer in transition when he drew 3 defenders on him instead of almost losing the ball to his foot. 

The breaks of the game, they call it.

I am not asking for your forgiveness because I bashed the hell out of you. I meant every word I said and I'm not taking any of it back. From a guy who loves basketball to another, I want you to shut me up and prove me wrong. You have one more year to prove us all wrong, and regain your form from last year to pre-Final Four you. You are, I still think, one of the best Power Forwards in the league right now, and could be a very serviceable SF when you go pro. 

Another year at redemption, play with the heart and pride that made people call you "Clutch Cat" last year

Understand that whenever something negative happens to us, we always try to find the reason behind it, and choose that which we had control over. If you made that shot and DLSU lost, the scorn of the people would be directed at no less than their MVP, who threw that turnover to AVO at the end of regulation. People won't talk about your game winner, but rather, how Jeron threw the game for his brother. Since we lost, all the anger is directed at you. Nobody seems to be talking about Vosotros' amazing shot to take the lead with only 19 seconds left in the game. People will talk about the blunder of our team and not the amazing things the opposing team did. 

UST has always lacked talent, but more than made up for it with heart. No matter how people overuse the "Puso" mantra, we know that it pushed us to win the title in 2006. The pride of carrying your school's name in front of your jersey, and the fighting spirit to win games while being egged on by the faith of everyone whose heart beats with the drums as they chant "Go USTe!". You had those to pair with your God-given talents.

Now all you have to do is play with those again. 

Play your game, and know that those who truly love this team may curse you but we have moved on. Like a younger brother, we'd want to slap your face for the poor decisions, but can't stay mad at you for long because we're family. All the rest who keep anger in their hearts are probably fans of the run or lost a huge bet. If they can't get over it, it shouldn't matter to you, because they shouldn't. 

Make your last year count. Do it for yourself, do it for your family. We're still all in for UST next year. 

Still believing,

Voltaire Lozada
AB Philosophy batch 07
UST