Games Wednesday (UST Quadricentennial Pavilion Arena)
7:30 a.m. – UST vs NUNS (16U)
9:30 a.m. – DLSZ vs FEU-D (16U)
12 noon – DLSU vs FEU (Women)
2 p.m. – DLSU vs FEU (Men)
4:30 p.m. – UST vs NU (Men)
7 p.m. – UST vs NU (Women)
UNIVERSITY of Santo Tomas and National University aim to join idle Ateneo atop the UAAP Season 88 collegiate men’s basketball standings today (Wednesday) at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion Arena.
Returning to the Growling Tigers’ lair, coach Pido Jarencio’s squad looks to capitalize on its homecourt advantage against a Bulldogs side eager to bounce back after last season’s frustrations. Tip-off is set at 4:30 p.m.
UST has been one of the early surprises of the tournament, snapping a nine-game losing streak to defending champion University of the Philippines and ending 16 consecutive defeats to last year’s runner-up De La Salle. The Growling Tigers are eyeing their first 3-0 start since 2015, the year the España-based program last reached the Finals.
Leadership has come from Forthsky Padrigao and Nic Cabañero, while Nigerian rookie center Collins Akowe has been a dominant force in the paint. Through two games, Akowe has averaged 24.5 points and 18 rebounds, punishing both the Fighting Maroons and the Green Archers down low. Padrigao has taken charge of orchestrating the offense, with Cabañero embracing the role of glue guy.
“These guys are good. I don’t think we’ll have a hard time grounding them because I talk to them off the court and always ask what they can improve on. We just have to keep grounded, we just have to stick to what we’re doing,” said Growling Tigers assistant coach Peter Martin.
For NU, coach Jeff Napa finally has a healthy roster after opening the season at 2-0. But he admits plenty of polishing remains before the Bulldogs can truly be considered Final Four contenders.
“Number one ay siyempre ‘yung consistency namin. Day in and day out, ‘yung approach namin, it should be all about effort. How we put ‘yung effort na binibigay namin and kung paano kami magiging consistent day in and day out,” Napa said.
“We will start again in practice, we will try to put in an effort again to stay sharp and stay positive kasi nga hindi biro ‘yung parating pa na mga kalaban namin. We need to be ready, and we need to stay healthy pa rin. ‘Yun ;yung number one concern para magawa namin ‘yung gusto namin gawin,” he added.
The Bulldogs will lean heavily on Senegalese center Omar John, who averages 12 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, as he faces off with Akowe in a highly-anticipated matchup. For Akowe, this marks the first time he will play against his former high school alma mater.
Earlier at 2 p.m., La Salle tries to get back on track against Far Eastern University. The Green Archers split their first two outings, while the Tamaraws are still winless after two games.
Meanwhile, reigning women’s champion NU faces UST in a rematch of last season’s Finals at 7 p.m. Newly-appointed Lady Bulldogs coach DA Olan braces for an early test against the Tigresses.
“With the short time that I took over, for me, it’s not really feasible to bring in a new system. Considering I got my knowledge of the game from coach Aris (Dimaunahan), probably it’s gonna be the same concepts and principles. Wala talaga masyadong bago at walang mag-iiba sa amin. It’s gonna be the same team that played sa training camp all the way sa preseason tournaments,” said Olan after NU’s 89-64 rout of FEU.
UST, for its part, is fresh off a 105-56 demolition of La Salle, a statement win that continued the Tigresses’ redemption drive.
Coach Haydee Ong knows NU remains a powerhouse despite the coaching change, but she stressed that her squad is focused only on what lies ahead.
“Always naman, not only against NU, sinasabi ko sa parati sa women’s basketball, wala na mahinang team. Kailangan pagtrabahuan mo para manalo ka and what’s more exciting is that we’re elevating the level of play ng women’s basketball. Hindi naman na siguro kami mabagal ngayon, 105 points na kami. I think ‘yun ‘yung maganda ngayon sa women’s basketball,” Ong said.
At 12 noon, La Salle and FEU aim to bounce back from lopsided season-opening defeats in the women’s division.
In the junior high school boys’ division, UST (3-0) and NU-Nazareth School (2-0) put their perfect records on the line at 7:30 a.m., followed by FEU-Diliman (1-1) against De La Salle-Zobel (0-2) at 9:30 a.m.
