UP Maroons join battle vs COVID-19

MANILA, Philippines — The UP men's basketball team may be on a hiatus from the hard court, but they are still living up to their Fighting Maroons moniker.

More than a handful of Diliman-based cagers, both former and current, have done their part in helping their respective communities during the pandemic.

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

COVID-19 has placed the entire world at a standstill. Over 3 million people worldwide have contracted the virus and more than two hundred thousand have died from it. Parts of the nation are on quarantine to prevent further spread of the deadly virus. This has made life much, much harder for many Filipinos. In the battle against this global pandemic, frontliners —medical and healthcare professionals, delivery crew, law and order officials, basic goods attendants and garbage collectors — risk their lives daily to provide us with protection and basic needs. They fight an unseen enemy, doing everything they can against all odds, to save lives and protect ours. UP student-athletes and varsity teams came together to respond to the needs of frontliners and some affected communities. The UP Men’s Basketball Team (UPMBT) with its supporters, sponsors, and the nowheretogobut UP Foundation initiated donation drives and relief efforts to provide PPE's and meals to frontliners, as well as food for stranded dormers in UP Diliman and UP Los Baños. UPMBT alumni set complementary efforts in motion, launching online initiatives and sharing their resources to help affected groups. Other Iskolar-Atletas joined in by using their skills to provide necessary items and meals for more frontliners, affected fellow students, University college staff, and affected communities. This is truly a time to come together to show care and support for everyone as we collectively fight this novel coronavirus. The UP Men’s Basketball Team and the nowheretogobutUP Foundation would like to express their gratitude to all frontliners for their dedication and service to the people. We must now all do our part so we can not only survive, but eventually rise above this crisis. Credits to Mr. Wardy Puyod for allowing us to use his rock rendition of “UP Naming Mahal” for this video.

A post shared by UP Men's Basketball Team (@up.mbt) on Apr 29, 2020 at 10:51pm PDT

Among them were Paul Desiderio, Jett Manuel, Ricci Rivero, Jarrell Lim, Ibrahim Outtara, Jaybie Mantilla and the Gomez de Liano brothers.
UP head coach Bo Perasol said the Maroons' fighting spirit on the court translated to how they handled and helped others during the health crisis.

“During these trying times, our “never give up” attitude on court should be evident in how we battle this pandemic together as a team," Perasol said.

"We are optimistic that we can bounce back and come out stronger. While we face our own personal battles, let's not forget our fellow Filipinos who are greatly affected by this virus. Let's do our share, no matter how big or small,” he added.

Meanwhile, the cagers also focused on keeping themselves healthy and fit during the prolonged break from action.

"[We] try try our best to stay in shape by doing our workouts at home since we can't go to the gym. Our coaches are always guiding us and giving us programs to follow," UAAP Season 82 Maroon skipper Noah Webb said.

"It's also very important for us to stay mentally tough since this is a different opponent we are facing," he added.

Apart from the basektball squad, other communities within UP, like the Nowhere to go but UP Foundation and the UP College of Human Kinetics, have initiated efforts to help affected frontliners and stranded UP students and staff during the health crisis.