Ateneo’s Kristian Porter. Photo from UAAP Media.MANILA — Ateneo de Manila University rookie Kristian Porter was almost the hero for the Blue Eagles on Sunday against Far Eastern University — key word, almost. 

READ: Jorick Bautista stars as FEU escapes Ateneo in OT for first win

The 6-foot-5 young Eagle had a number of attempts in the clutch to finish the game in regulation to get the Tab Baldwin-coached team its second win of UAAP Season 87, but he missed all of his shots including the three-pointer right before overtime started.

They eventually fell prey to Jorick Bautista and the Tamaraws in OT, and this 66-65 loss sent them back to the loss column again at 1-4.

Despite the misses, however, Porter does not have any regrets about having the guts to deliver what could have been the closing blows for Ateneo.

“The coaches just said take the good shots, the open shots, and during those situations, that guy was me,” he told a few reporters right before exiting the Big Dome.

“I shot them, I missed them, but at the end of the game, they told me that they trust me, and have my back no matter what. I’ll just take those learning experiences, keep working on my shots for the next game,” he continued, while saying that he will keep on attempting the same shots if the opportunity arises again in the future. 

Ateneo’s Kristian Porter. Photo from UAAP Media.

“I’m taking it. I’m not gonna throw away the trust that everyone has put in me, so 101%, I’m taking that shot and next time, I’m gonna make it.”

Kristian was not the only Blue Eagle who had costly misses against FEU. The whole squad only shot 27-of-75 (28%) from the field, and they also missed 13 of their 23 attempts at the foul line (10/23, 43.5%) in a one-point loss. 

And these, according to the optimistic Porter, will just make things better eventually for the Eagles who are still struggling to get their groove in Season 87. 

“I take it as a learning curve. We overall didn’t shoot the ball that well. But that’s something we can work on, something we can improve on, and hopefully something we can lean on in the future,” he said.

READ: Former Ateneo star LA Tenorio has challenge for Jared Bahay, present Blue Eagles

Moving forward, Porter is also remaining upbeat of their campaign despite Ateneo absorbing another defeat once again. 

“Syempre, we’re down but it's not enough to make us kick the bucket. We’re not gonna give up. We're gonna work hard and next game, it’s gonna be a different team,” he insisted. 

“We’re gonna reassess, keep on our strengths, and we’ll see how it turns out,” ended the young ace. 

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