12 September 2018
By Maxine Louise Lagman
Manila, Philippines – University of Santo Tomas pulled through a tough competition in that of the Far Eastern University, 76-74, Wednesday in the UAAP Season 81 men’s basketball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Rookies Ken Zamora and Joshua Marcos were on top of their game as they made crucial baskets for the Growling Tigers, along with their veterans Renzo Subido and Marvin Lee, to make it into the winning column under new coach Aldin Ayo.
Ayo, former coach of De La Salle University, turned emotional during the post-game presscon after he led UST win against FEU, the first time since their match up in the UAAP Season 78 Finals.
“Deserving yung UST (ng panalo),” said Ayo. “They deserve this. Kasi grabe yung suporta eh. I know it’s too early. Di kami makukuntento rito, pero the community deserves this.”
Marcos put 11 of his 12 points in the second quarter, which gave UST a 39-32 lead coming into the second half and never let go of it until the third with a 56-52 score.
However, the Tamaraws went head-on in the fourth salvo with an 8-0 run for a 60-56 lead.
Subido and Zachary Huang combined for back-to-back baskets to put the game on 60-all dreadlock. The Tams were hard to tame as Prince Orizu went for a dunk later in the game, 71-72.
Another UST rookie, Garmy Mahinay answered back with a layup followed by Zamora, to put UST up by five, 76-71, with only 18.5 ticks left.
Hubert Cani went for a triple for FEU, 76-74, 10.5 seconds left.
FEU could have won the game, but Arvin Tolentino missed the basket in the three-point line as time expired.
Subido led UST with 18 points, while Lee added 13.
On the other hand, Orizu had a double-double record of 25 points and 15 boards, while Cani added 15 points in the losing effort.
The Scores:
UST 76 – Subido 18, Lee 13, Marcos 12, Akomo 10, Huang 9, Cansino 7, Zamora 5, Mahinay 2, Cosejo 0, Cuanan 0, Bonleon 0.
FEU 74 – Orizu 25, Cani 15, Escoto 13, Tolentino 6, Comboy 5, Parker 4, Tuffin 2, Ebona 2, Stockton 2, Inigo 0, Gonzales 0.
Quarters: 15-17, 39-32, 56-52, 76-74.
Follow the writer on Twitter: @meanxi
Photo Gallery at https://www.facebook.com/Burnsports/
