Fil-Am Miguel Yniguez commits to U.P. Fighting Maroons | Sports Desk - video Dailymotion

CNN Philippines

It's UP fight for Filipino-American Miguel Yniguez!  The 6-foot-five sharpshooter is committing to the Diliman based squad. Yniguez will be eligible to play for UP in Season 88. He will have 4 years to make an impact for the Fighting Maroons.  Yniguez suited up for San Francisco State in the U.S. NCAA Division Two in 2023. The sweet-shooting athlete actually played one game for UP during the Pinoy-liga Collegiate Cup in July last year.   Joining us to go all out on this story is Miguel Yniguez of the UP Fighting Maroons. He joins us live from San Diego, California.  Visit our website for more #NewsYouCanTrust: https://www.cnnphilippines.com/  Follow our social media pages:  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CNNPhilippines • Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cnnphilippines/ • Twitter: https://twitter.com/cnnphilippines

Transcript

00:00 [MUSIC PLAYING]

00:08 Well, it's a UP fight for Filipino-American Miguel

00:11 Iniguez, the 6'5" sharpshooter, is committing

00:14 to the Diliman Bay squad.

00:15 Iniguez will be eligible to play for UP in season 88.

00:19 He will have four years to make an impact

00:22 for the Fighting Maroons.

00:23 Iniguez suited up for San Francisco State in the US NCAA

00:28 Division II in 2023.

00:30 The sweet shooting athlete actually

00:32 played one game for UP during the Pinoy Liga Collegiate Cup

00:36 in July last year.

00:38 And joining us tonight to go all out on this story

00:40 is Miguel Iniguez, now with the UP Fighting Maroons.

00:44 And he is joining us by Zoom all the way

00:47 from San Diego, California.

00:48 It's 4:35 AM there, as you can see on your screens.

00:53 Good evening from Manila, Miguel, and good morning

00:56 there to you.

00:56 Welcome to the show.

00:57 Thank you for agreeing to do this, man.

01:01 Yeah, good evening, Andre.

01:02 How are you doing?

01:03 I'm good.

01:04 I'm good.

01:04 Really great.

01:05 I'm just really excited to talk to you, Miguel.

01:07 You've been making rounds here on local articles, and why not?

01:13 You're committing to UP.

01:14 So you chose to play for UP, a team

01:17 that you actually suited for.

01:18 You know the players, the coaches, and everything,

01:22 but you only had a taste.

01:23 And now you will be playing-- you're

01:25 eligible to play for four years in the UAAP.

01:30 Other teams, for sure, have offered,

01:33 also love to have your services, a 6'5" sharp shooter.

01:36 Why ultimately decide to leave San Diego State, fly to Manila,

01:43 and play for UP in the UAAP?

01:44 You know, ever since high school,

01:50 UP has been very consistent in their recruiting.

01:54 Coach Tom and Coach Gould, they've

01:55 been very gracious through the recruiting process,

01:59 allowing me to practice and play with them this past June

02:04 in that Pinole League game.

02:08 Yeah, and on my dad's side of the family,

02:10 we're very deeply rooted.

02:13 Multiple generations, going back to my Lola and Lolo,

02:19 they went to UP as well.

02:20 So yeah.

02:23 And it's just the playing that past June,

02:27 being there and seeing the program, the culture,

02:30 and the fans, it was very exciting to see.

02:33 And it's something I want to be a part of.

02:36 And it's like what you said.

02:37 It's in the genes.

02:38 And then your family, they went to UP.

02:40 So it means something special for you.

02:43 And you played for them in the Pinole League, a collegiate cup

02:47 last year.

02:48 So when you played for them, did you feel, wow,

02:52 I have chemistry.

02:53 I can actually fit in with this system.

02:55 Yeah, I thought I would fit in well in Coach Gould's plan.

03:05 And we spoke a lot about it over this past month, really.

03:12 Yeah, it just felt good to be out there and play

03:16 with those guys.

03:17 Did you get to watch any games?

03:21 Of course, they went to the finals.

03:22 They were beaten by LaSalle.

03:24 Painful to watch, for sure, from you, because you want to go to UP.

03:30 But did you watch?

03:31 What can you say about how UP played in the recently

03:34 concluded UAP Season 86, Miguel?

03:39 Yeah, I was able to watch a bunch of regular season games

03:42 during the playoffs.

03:45 Yeah, I mean, obviously a heartbreaker going down

03:48 to the last final game of the season.

03:50 But that kind of loss leaves you hungry for the next season.

03:57 And I'm excited to be a part of it

04:01 with all the young guys and all the returners.

04:03 It's going to be special.

04:05 Miguel, how difficult was the decision

04:08 to make to leave San Francisco State, right,

04:13 and leave there and ultimately fly back to Manila

04:18 and play for UP?

04:19 Was there-- out of 100%, what was the difficulty?

04:24 Or was it instantaneous?

04:26 Was it automatic for you, like, OK, I'm

04:29 going to leave San Francisco State.

04:30 I'm going to go and play for UP?

04:34 Yeah, it was a decision I've been thinking about ever

04:38 since high school, being here in the States.

04:41 So it was a little difficult with my opportunity here.

04:44 But I mean, once I was playing some games already at SF State,

04:52 and I wasn't getting what I wanted out of it,

04:54 I decided it was time to go.

04:57 Yeah, it was probably like 9 out of 10 difficult.

04:59 Yeah, yeah.

05:01 Miguel, you've played in the US NCAA Division II.

05:05 You've got the taste of how basketball is played

05:09 in the US collegiate style.

05:11 How do you compare the style of play

05:14 there and the style of play in the UAAP?

05:18 And what will you be bringing, things that you have learned,

05:21 things that you've picked up that you can apply when

05:23 you play for UP in the UAAP?

05:27 Yeah, it's just the difference in pace.

05:30 It's a lot faster pace in the Philippines,

05:35 considering the shorter shot clock.

05:36 And yeah, it's definitely more physical with the guard play

05:44 and a lot faster.

05:47 But basketball is basketball all around the world.

05:51 And I think I'll be able to adjust.

05:54 When I bring to UP, I've been labeled

05:58 as a shooter for a lot of media outlets.

06:00 Because you are.

06:01 Yes.

06:02 Yeah.

06:04 But I think I bring versatility, not only three-point shooting,

06:08 play rebounding, interior presence,

06:12 and not just my basketball skills,

06:14 but I hope to be a good energy off the bench

06:18 and good energy for my teammates and supporting them.

06:21 I like that.

06:22 Yeah, I like that mindset, Miguel.

06:24 And of course, you can let it fly

06:26 and you can knock down outside shots.

06:28 That is always welcome for any team.

06:30 And you will be playing for a very talented and decorated

06:33 coach in Goldwyn-Monteverde.

06:35 He's been in the finals the last three seasons,

06:37 taking UP there, even leading them

06:39 to their historic championship, ending that more than three

06:44 decade-long drought for UP.

06:48 You said you've always been scouted and recruited

06:50 by Coach Gold.

06:51 What about Coach Gold made you decide,

06:54 I want to play for this guy?

06:59 Probably just the strive for greatness, just the consistency

07:05 in his recruiting, just his coaching style.

07:10 And I know that one championship isn't enough for him.

07:14 So that's what I love about him.

07:15 I know the past two runner-ups have been painful.

07:20 So he's looking to increase his game, always.

07:25 Well, other than UP, you can totally be honest with me here.

07:29 We are live.

07:30 Other than UP, which team or teams

07:31 did you consider playing for?

07:33 Or was it only just--

07:34 you were locked and loaded with University of the Philippines?

07:40 There were other schools, honestly, out of respect.

07:43 I wouldn't like to name them by name.

07:44 But I kept it kind of a small number of schools

07:50 just to simplify the recruiting process.

07:54 But it's always been UP these past two or three years.

08:01 Yeah, you did mention already what

08:02 you will bring to the table.

08:04 So I won't ask you that anymore.

08:06 Because you said, aside from the shooting,

08:09 you also want to bring energy off the bench and defense.

08:14 You will be joining a team, as you said, painful finish

08:18 just the past two seasons, only just being a runner-up

08:23 and losing in the finals the last two seasons.

08:26 And they expect, when you come in, of course, a lot from you.

08:31 You played in the US, in the NCAA.

08:34 The next couple of seasons, they will be still contenders.

08:37 But adding you makes them a solid contender.

08:41 Does that add more pressure to you?

08:44 Yeah, there's a certain level of pressure of that.

08:49 But honestly, just past--

08:53 being in SF State and the limited opportunity I have,

08:58 it's made me hungrier.

09:00 I've been looking for this kind of opportunity for a long time.

09:04 What do you want to say to all the--

09:06 because I won't ask you what you will bring to the table already.

09:09 You did that.

09:10 So please, just your message to all the supporters

09:14 and the fans of UP.

09:15 Go ahead, Miguel.

09:16 [AUDIO OUT]

09:20 Just let's work.

09:22 UP fight.

09:24 I'm very excited to be a part of this program.

09:28 All the support, all the fans, all the coaches, coaching staff.

09:31 And I'm excited to be a part of a hungry team and a hungry

09:34 program.

09:35 Miguel, thank you for your time.

09:37 Good morning to you.

09:37 Thank you for waking up very early.

09:39 I hope this won't be the last conversation that we have.

09:42 We'll be speaking to you again soon.

09:45 And we'll be keeping our eyes on you, kid.

09:46 Thank you so much for joining us live here on Sports Desk

09:49 on CNN Philippines.

09:50 Thank you, Miguel.

09:51 All the best to you.

09:53 Thank you for having me.

09:54 Thank you so much.

09:55 That was Filipino-American sharpshooter Miguel Iniguez

09:57 not committing with a UP fight in Maroons.

10:00 And he will be suiting up in season 88.

Fil-Am Miguel Yniguez commits to U.P. Fighting Maroons | Sports Desk

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