Good going, King Tiger

GOOD GOING, KING TIGER

A Tribute to Kevin Ferrer

by Lian Nami Buan
co-founder of Tomasinoweb

No one in that crowd can imagine what Kevin Ferrer must have felt when he took that desperation shot way beyond the line as the seconds wound down.

It was the last shot of his collegiate career, and it was headed nowhere near the basket. Perhaps, in another day, that shot would have sank in. In another day, where Kevin Ferrer was Kevin Ferrer.

The last we saw Kevin Ferrer in Game 3 was when he buried a field goal at the opening salvo. It was a sweet spot, his form was gorgeous, and nobody in that UST crowd doubted that it was the Kevin Ferrer we knew. The Kevin Ferrer who salvaged Finals Game 2, the Kevin Ferrer who carried the team all season long. It was the Kevin Ferrer he's always meant to be. Even without a trophy, he was looking every bit like an MVP.

But something happened after that shot. In the first two quarters, it was Karim Abdul who heated up, making baskets after baskets after baskets that for a while we didn't notice --- where was Kevin Ferrer?

In the third quarter when FEU was starting to pull away, the crowd started to look for Kevin. We trailed where he went and every time he touched the ball we wished he would take the shot. Never mind if he misses, though we wished he wouldn't. 

It was fast becoming obvious that he was having an off day. But there were more than 15 minutes left in the game. Nothing is permanent in basketball, not even bad luck. Basketball is a story of heroes emerging from ashes, and we were almost sure that it was going to be one of those stories, that Kevin Ferrer was a sleeping volcano just waiting for his moment to erupt.

And when he does, it was going to be spectacular; his opponents would be left to eat his dust, and the other crowd with nothing left to say but just 'wow.'

There was a moment during the Third Quarter when the ball was passed around and finally into the hands of Kevin, who was on the left of the paint. We thought, we hoped, that it was going to be the moment, instead he turned around and passed the ball to Kent Lao. Lao went on to make that three pointer that had the UST crowd on its feet. After that, the Tigers were on a roll. If it wasn't Ed Daquioag, it was the breakaway Marvin Lee, and again we forgot about Kevin Ferrer. 

Slowly but surely, the Tigers erased FEU's 10-point lead, and in two magnificent minutes, we were able to build a six-point lead. Never mind Kevin Ferrer, the team was carrying the team, stepping up where Kevin was missing.

And then heartbreak, after heartbreak, after heartbreak. Roger Pogoy exploding and then Mike Tolomia, making the 2 of his 13 loud points through a fastbreak that stretched FEU's lead to 3, 1:07 left in the game.

It was a lead that proved to be insurmountable.

It will be unfair for Ed Daquioag if we say that things might have been different had Kevin Ferrer took control of that last minute. But in another day, where Kevin Ferrer is Kevin Ferrer, it would have been possible.

With 48 seconds left in the game and UST just down by two, my side of the crowd was shouting “Kevin!!! Kevin!!!” and if those calls were any indication, until the end, there was one person we were counting on.

And perhaps, of the pain in seeing the Tigers fail for the 9th year, the what-could-bes would be the hardest to move on from.

What could have been, had Kevin Ferrer been Kevin Ferrer?

The FEU Tamaraws are rightful champions. Everybody knows that. It is also a loss that would take just a few while to accept because the Tigers put up a valiant fight.

But no one can ever imagine what Kevin Ferrer must be feeling now. He was destined to be a star. He had a stellar high school career and chose to stick with UST going to college. Unlike his batchmate Kiefer Ravena, Kevin Ferrer spent years under the radar, his greatness unbenknownst to most. 

Before this season, we remember UST as the persistent team in 2012 and 2013, managing trips to the finals under the wing of its Kings -- Jeric Fortuna and Jeric Teng.

Nobody knew of Kevin Ferrer, though he played both Finals series. He endured a lackluster Season 77 that had everybody counting UST out going to Season 78.

But Kevin Ferrer had a completely different plan. Season 78 was going to be his year. It was written in the stars. 

He had the makings of a champion, and showed game after game after game that he may just be the first King Tiger in 9 years who was going to get his crown.

It is heartbreaking to see that destiny fall apart in the last 40 minutes of his collegiate career, to see him leap from way beyond the line in those last seconds and know that it was never going to count.

UST has lost its third championship battle in the last four years, and Kevin Ferrer -- our King Tiger -- was missing during the war.

But Kevin Ferrer is a star. Only a star could pluck a team from the bottom and catapult it to the top in just a year. Only a star could lead a season-long rally like that --- swift and strong, like kings in their jungle.

Only a star could hit six three pointers that blew open Game 2 for the Tigers. Only a star could make the formidable FEU team bleed for their ring. 

We missed Kevin Ferrer in Game 3, but we remember the many times the volcano erupted, much to our delight and pride. 

Without Kevin Ferrer, Season 78 would have been a very different story. We were one game shy from a happy ending, but for many years we will relish the season that we stood tall over our adversaries, up until the very end.

Kevin Ferrer made that happen.

In all ways possible, Kevin Ferrer is a star. And a star always shines bright, especially in his darkest night.

Thank you for a wonderful season, King Tiger, the Thomasian Community is grateful, and we will always, always, have your back.