UST bounces back with win over UP

MANILA, Philippines — Too much weapons.

University of Santo Tomas proved to be too good for University of the Philippines as they rallied to a 79-69 win in the 76th UAAP men’s basketball tournament on Wednesday, July 24, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

The Growling Tigers barely felt Jeric Teng’s absence as Kevin Ferrer turned in a double-double performance, finishing with 16 points and 10 rebounds to lead UST to a bounce-back effort from their loss to Far Eastern University.

“Without Jeric, si Ferrer ang aasahan,” coach Pido Jarencio said. “Positive naman ang nangyari. Naka double-double si Kevin.”

Aljon Mariano and Karim Abdul also played well for the Tigers, posting 18 and 14 markers, respectively, while Clark Bautista provided the finishing blows as he poured in 9 of his 12 points in the final period.

The win pushed the Espana-based squad to solo second with a 4-2 record. The Fighting Maroons, meanwhile, remained winless in 6 games.

UST led by just 7 late in the game against a fighting UP squad, but the Tigers caught fire in the last two minutes to turn back whatever upset bid the Maroons had in mind.

UP kept the game within reach for the most part, as the Diliman crew relied on Sam Marata and Kyles Lao, who were steady for UP with a combined 25 points. – Rappler.com