THE UST Growling Tigers came to within a point until a late surge secured a hard-earned 94-84 win for the league-leading Ateneo Blue Eagles at the Araneta Coliseum Wednesday.
A three-pointer by UST team captain Marvin Lee trimmed Ateneo’s lead, 81-80. But the Blue Eagles pulled away with a 13-4 run to remain undefeated in five games.
The Tigers missed eight field goals, eight
freethrows, and committed five turnovers in the last 6:20 minutes of the game.
“Medyo kapos lang pero lumalaban. Hindi katulad last year na kapag natambakan, wala na, out na,” UST head coach Boy Sablan said. “Nanggigil eh. Tataas confidence nila kung lumamang tayo.”
UST cut Ateneo’s 20-point lead to five with a blistering 17-2 run in the third period.
Matt Nieto led Ateneo with a career-high 22 points, with four triples and a killer jumper with 30 seconds left in the game.
Lee had 22 markers while Jordan Sta. Ana added 21, with UST dropping to 0-5 for last place in the standings.
The Growling Tigers will try to bounce back against defending champions De La Salle University Green Archers on Sept. 30, Saturday, 2 p.m., at same venue.
