UPDATED 16 September 2014, 9:36 p.m. – THE UST Growling Tigers capped a disappointing UAAP Season 77
with a 73-78 loss at the hands of a motivated University of the East Red
Warriors at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum on Tuesday.
The Tigers dropped their fourth straight game and
finished with a 5-9 record for sixth place, while the Warriors advanced to a
knockout game against the NU Bulldogs for a slot at the Final Four.
Aljon Mariano went all out in his last UAAP game with the Tigers
and finished with a game-high 18 points.
UST cut a 12-point deficit in half, 69-75, with less than two
minutes left. But Roi Sumang delivered a dagger layup for UE, 77-69.
Ed Daquioag and Karim Abdul, who finished with 16 points and 13
points each, tried to salvage the Growling Tigers and scored four more points,
but came up short as the time expired.
“Overall, ‘yung game ng mga bata maganda. Nakita naman ng
crowd ‘yung fighting pride nila kaya lang ‘yung breaks ng game hindi napunta sa
atin,” UST head coach Bong dela Cruz said.
Dela Cruz likewise took the blame for the Tigers’ dismal season
and described their stint as a “failure.”
“I failed. The players did their best, pero ‘yung coaches at
sakin nagkaproblema,” he said. “‘Yung system na ina-adopt ko, hindi
nag-fit sa team.”
Dela Cruz also apologized to the Thomasian community for missing
the Final Four this season, the first time since 2010.
In the first half, UST was aggressive offensively, with a 31-26
advantage behind Mariano.
But the Tigers’ lead was short-lived as the combined efforts of
Dan Alberto and Sumang swung the momentum back to the Warriors at the break,
36-35.
UST never tasted the lead again in the second half as Charles
Mammie made his presence felt inside the paint to help UE build a 13-point
lead, 58-45.
Bong Galanza top-scored for UE with 17 points. Paolo Pe and Kim
Lo, who will also graduate after this season, tallied nine and seven points,
respectively, for UST. Josiah Darren G. Saynes
***
BOX SCORE:
UST 73 – Mariano 18, Daquioag 16, Abdul 13, Pe 9, Lo 7, Sheriff 6,
Vigil 4
UE 78 – Galanza 17, Alberto 15, Sumang 10, Varilla 9, Javier 8,
Mammie 7, Palma 4, Arafat 3, Olayon 2, Guiang 2, Jumao-as 1
Quarter Scores: 17-15, 35-36,
50-60, 73-78
