FINALLY… the Tigers growled.
Neither the opponent’s seven-game winning streak nor home court advantage stopped the UST Growling Tigers from upsetting the Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles in a 77-73, victory last Sept. 3. UST climbed to solo sixth place with a 4-8 win-loss card and won consecutive games for the first time in the ongoing seniors cage wars.
In the absence of main men Danila Pribhdas who had the flu, and Warren de Guzman who sprained his right foot five minutes into the first quarter, rookie Dylan Ababou stepped up, scoring a game-high 20 points.
Leading by a high of 22 points early in the third period, UST almost let the game slip out of its hand as Ateneo closed in with a 7-0 blast, 74-72, with only 1:25 left in the game. Following a Jai Reyes free throw, forward-center Chester Taylor sank a mid-range basket to give UST a three-point cushion, 76-73.
In the ensuing plays, Ateneo point guard LA Tenorio missed two crucial treys. Guard Jojo Duncil split his charities off a desperation foul from Eagle forward JC Intal to secure the victory against a team it has not defeated since 2001.
“Ang sarap talunin ang Ateneo. Ang sarap na mapatahimik natin sila sa sarili nilang bahay,” Caoch Reonel Parado said. “Nasorpresa talaga ako sa nilaro nila (players) dahil baliktad ‘yung nangyari—sa halip na tayo ‘yung humahabol, sila (Ateneo) na ‘yung humahabol. Tapos hindi pa naglaro sina Warren (de Guzman) at Danny (Pribhdas).”
Ababou was flawless from inside the arc shooting 7-for-7 in 21 quality minutes. Taylor, who rarely saw action last season, added 12 points and six boards for the Tigers.
Forward Doug Kramer led the Eagles with 14 points.
“Natutuwa ako sa nangyari at marami sa kanila ‘yung nag-step up. Kahit muntik na tayong matalo, ang importante, hindi sila bumigay,” Parado said. “This is the team that will play next season.”
Testing the young guns
The struggling Tigers relied on the last-second heroics of De Guzman to complete a come-from-behind victory against Adamson University Falcons, 65-62, last Aug. 27.
The wily swingman drilled a three-pointer with only 14 seconds left in the game.
Down by as many as 13 points in the third period, UST rallied behind the heroics of backcourt general Jun Cortez who scored all of his seven points in the last three minutes of play to give UST a fighting chance.
UST opened the second round in high spirits following an overtime triumph against the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons, 92-85. In the two ensuing matches, however, UST was trampled upon by the University of the East Red Warriors, 53-66, and the defending champion De la Salle University Green Archers, 72-98.
With three second-round victories, the Tigers avoided finishing dead last, a possibility Parado predicted earlier. UST, however, will again miss a Final Four seat for the third-consecutive time.
Coming to the Tigers’ rescue
In a team wrecked by chinks and cracks in recent years, a good number of Tigers, aside from veterans De Guzman and Pribhdas, have managed to put in a touch of class.
Duncil led the Tigers in scoring average in the first round with 11.8 points per game. The 22-year-old Pampanga native was also the team’s top scorer for five consecutive games prior to the UST-Adamson match in the second round.
“Hindi ko na napapansin ‘yung score ko. Basta kapag game na, go-hard lang ako palagi,” Duncil said.
Ababou has also contributed fairly to the campaign of UST this season, averaging close to seven points in just 11 minutes in the first round. Ababou is also a threat from the rainbow territory.
Showing a significant improvement this season are sophomores Taylor and Francis Allera.
