Tigers falter late against UE, fall to fourth-straight defeat
By Anton Jenard Villegas
The UST Growling Tigers suffered their fourth straight loss in the UAAP Season 85 men’s basketball tournament as the UE Red Warriors sank crucial baskets in the final period to avoid UST’s final push, 78–68, Sunday afternoon in the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
This is the first win of the University of the East against the Tigers since October 7, 2017.
UE’s prized rookie Luis Villegas led the way for the Red Warriors as he sank 12 of his 17 points in the second half and dished out six assists in the game. UE guard Nick Paranada also had a good outing with 17 points of his own.
Tigers’ foreign student-athlete Adama Faye ended with 11 points and nine rebounds despite being ejected at the 2:01 mark of the 3rd quarter as he elbowed Harvey Pagsanjan under the basket. Nic Cabañero had an inefficient outing as he only shot 29.4% from the field but still surpassed his scoring average, being able to notch19 markers.
The first period of play started out rough for the Growling Tigers as they didn’t score in the first three minutes of the ballgame.
Migs Pangilinan helped in taking the lead for the Growling Tigers in the quarter as he answered Villegas’ layup with his own basket from beyond the arc, 5–5.
The quarter ended in a low-scoring affair as Kenji Duremdes scored a fastbreak layup before time expired, 13–10.
The UE Red Warriors answered with the emergence of Nico Paranada as he sank two long bombs from beyond the arc and a total of eight points in the second quarter.
The first points scored by the UST’s star guard in Cabañero came in the second quarter as he knocked down two hard layups with a foul, 29–28.
The third quarter saw UE taking the lead as Jojo Antiporda sank three long bombs and two from mid-range to give the Red Warriors a six-point cushion, 55–49.
Faye added more problems for the Tigers on defense as he elbowed Harvey Pagsanjan under the basket, earning himself a ticket outside the playing court with the referees giving him a disqualifying foul in the 2:01 mark of the third period.
Faye had an intimidating presence in the paint matching up with the former Growling Tiger Gani Stevens who ended the game with 11 points but had to deal with foul trouble as he was fouled out late in the game.
The final salvo made it interesting for the UE Red Warriors as they changed to a different gear with Villegas leading the way for the UE Red Warriors scoring eight crucial points in the period.
Pagsanjan then iced the game with a clutch three-pointer in the dying minutes of the game, 78–68, to give UST its fourth-straight loss.
The UST Growling Tigers look to break their four-game cold streak as they face their rivals in Espana, the FEU Tamaraws, on Wednesday, 6:30 pm in the Mall of Asia Arena.
The Scores:
UE 78 — Villegas 17, N. Paranada 17, Antiporda 13, Stevens 11, Pagsanjan 5, Payawal 5, K. Paranada 4, Sawat 4, Abatayo 2, Beltran 0, Remogat 0, Guevarra 0, Alcantara 0, Langit 0, Lingo-lingo 0.
UST 68 — Cabanero 19, Lazarte 12, Faye 11, Manalang 9, Pangilinan 8, Manaytay 5, Duremdes 2, Calimag 1, Mantua 1, Garing 0, Herrera 0.
Quarters: 10–13, 28–29, 55–49, 78–68.
