Red-hot Maroons
Somewhere at the intersection of history, University of the Philippines found a way to learn a lesson without having to pay for it.
The Maroons handed a hot-shooting University of the East Red Warriors a 91-81 beating, one where they had to rally from an early deficit to stretch their season-best winning streak in the UAAP men’s basketball tournament.
“UE got ahead of us [early],” UP coach Goldwin Monteverde said after the match at University of Santo Tomas Quadricentennial Pavilion on Saturday. “That’s one test for the team, playing tough defense to help us come back in the game.”
The Maroons jumped to their fifth win in seven games, staying half a game ahead of Far Eastern and National University (both 4-2) in the standings. UP, which once lost 27 straight games over the course of three seasons, handed UE a seventh straight defeat to start the season and the school’s 27th overall.
That isn’t quite the mark of shame yet—Adamson holds the record for most consecutive games lost at 35, spread across four seasons.
The win also gave UP a glimpse of something crucial it needs to fix, and Monteverde’s wards didn’t even have to lose to expose that flaw.
“Along the way, we will need to start strong,” the champion coach said. “I guess as we go along in the season, we’ll learn to do that.”
In the second game, University of Santo Tomas repaid the support of its passionate fan base with an 80-68 “home” victory over Ateneo.
The Tigers thus ended their record at 4-3, and with a lot of optimism after opening the season with a loss and enduring one heartbreaking defeat that denied them a shot at a piece of the first-round lead.
“It’s such a big boost for us that we saw them here,” assistant coach Japs Cuan said of the yellow-clad fans that flocked to the Q-Pav.
“The players were inspired. By halftime, we saw that because in the first half, it was a tight game.”
UST used a 21-4 run in the third quarter to pull away from Ateneo, which dropped to 3-4.
UP’s winning streak began after back-to-back losses to the Tamaraws and the Bulldogs.
And UE threatened to end that run, taking early leads and leading by four late in the third quarter.
But graduating marksman Chicco Briones and Elliot Dimaculangan combined for 12 unanswered points to put the Fighting Maroons ahead, 73-65, heading into the final period.
The Red Warriors put up a semblance of their own comeback, with Toper Lagat knocking down two triples in the payoff period to keep UE within five points, 86-81, with 2:55 remaining.
UE, however, could no longer muster any basket after that.
UE, which shot 38 percent from the field and sank 12 three-pointers, led by as many as 10 points late in the second quarter, 43-33. UP, however, trimmed the deficit to just three at halftime, 45-48.
Transferee wingman James Payosing led seven Fighting Maroons in double figures with 16 points and 12 rebounds.
Briones added 13 points, shooting a perfect 3-of-3 from beyond the arc, while Gani Stevens contributed 12 points, nine rebounds and two blocks.
Veejay Pre also turned in an all-around performance with 11 points, seven rebounds, and six assists. Dimaculangan also had 11 points, adding five rebounds, three assists and two steals.
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