The UST Growling Tigers took down the Gilas Youth on Tuesday at the FilOil EcoOil Centre, 99-90, to finish the eliminations strong ahead of the quarterfinals of the FilOil EcoOil Preseason Cup.
UST ended the eliminations with a 3-3 record to secure the No. 4 seed in the UAAP bracket, while Gilas Youth remained winless at 0-4.
Collins Akowe paced the Tigers with 18 points and nine rebounds, while Koji Buenaflor added 14.
UST had a slow start, ending the opening frame trailing by two, 25-23.
Both teams traded baskets at the start of the second quarter, tying the game at 36-all. From there, UST unleashed a 21-6 blitz to close the first half with a 15-point advantage, 57-42.
Gilas Youth responded with a 23-10 spurt to pull within four, 69-65. Back-to-back baskets from Buenaflor pushed the lead back to eight, 76-68.
Gilas remained within striking distance through timely baskets from Joaquin Tovera and Chog Moral, pulling within four, 94-90, with less than two minutes remaining. However, UST sealed the victory from the free-throw line, 99-90.
“Siguro ‘yong composure,” UST assistant coach Japs Cuan said when asked what the team would work on after the game. “Iyong ayaw lang namin is nag-relax sila during most part of the game. Credit din naman ‘to to the Gilas Youth team, they really played well today and also, good job of their coaching staff.”
UST assistant coach Juno Sauler serves as Gilas Youth’s head coach.
Lino Tubongbanua led Gilas Youth with 24 points. Moral and Tovera added 21 and 15, respectively.
The quarterfinal matchups have yet to be determined. The quarterfinals are scheduled for July 21.
