It takes around 25 to 30 kilometers to travel from the University of Perpetual Help System DALTA's Las Piñas campus to the Filoil EcoOil Centre in San Juan.
The travel time usually takes more than an hour, but eager students of Perpetual come in throngs, whether it is a 9:30 a.m. Saturday game or a 3:30 p.m. weekday game, just to support their beloved team.
For head coach Myk Saguiguit, the strong support from their sixth man fuels them to win.
"Nakakatuwa, they are the 'Night, Night Perpetualites,'" said Saguiguit when asked about the support of the fans during their win against 86-80 against Emilio Aguinaldo College.
Saguiguit was also making a reference to the 'Night, Night' pose of Perpetual fans which went viral on social media as the first one got 82k interactions and 3.3k shares.
"Kami nagpauso n'on ah. Meron na kaming originality sa NC (We started that. We have originality here in the NC)," Saguiguit added as other fans also did it eventually.
Saguiguit also said the support is not just seen in the arena, but also on campus.
"Ang galing niyan. 'Pag papasok ako sa Perpetual, hindi makakapasok sasakyan mo d'on kasi ang daming buses," he said. "Sila mismo ang kumukuha mismo ng ticket sa sports office. Sila ang pumupunta."
"Kaya ang hirap matalo. Kasi ilalaban namin mga estudyante namin."
("It's great. When I enter Perpetual, you can't get your vehicle inside because of the number of buses. They get their tickets themselves at the sports office. They go there themselves... That's why it's hard to lose. Because we'll fight for our students.")
The ALTAs, however, still need the 'Night, Night Perpetualites' especially in their upcoming crucial game against San Sebastian College-Recoletos on Tuesday.
A win on Tuesday will boost Perpetual's slim chances of heading into the Final Four.
—JMB, GMA Integrated News
