UNIVERSITY of the East big Precious Momowei was on the brink of history on Wednesday, breaching the 40-point mark - something which hasn’t been done in the UAAP since ex-Red Warrior Alvin Pasaol back in Season 80.
Not only did Momowei drop such a rare point total of 42, but the red-and-white was also on the verge of its first victory in six tries - against preseason favorite La Salle, no less.
Unfortunately for UE, its chances took a nosedive when Wello Lingolingo, who flanked Momowei and John Abate on the scoring front with 24 points and six rebounds, was thrown out of the game.
Lingolingo was sent back to the locker room after getting a technical for faking a foul in the third quarter then in the final frame, an unsportsmanlike foul for landing on Green Archers guard Kean Baclaan’s right leg in an attempt to force a jumpball.
Not long after, Baclaan lay on the floor in pain and had to be stretchered out.
With the Lanao Del Norte guard dismissed, the Red Warriors ultimately ran out of gas for a one-point loss in overtime.
After the game, Momowei and head coach Chris Gavina aired their frustrations on the call that, in their eyes, cost them the contest.
“They told me that Wello jumped f— purposely on Baclaan on a loose ball? Get the f— out of here. There's no way,” Gavina said.
READ: Chris Gavina blasts UAAP referees with expletive-filled rant
“Honestly, I was gonna ask a question. Do you guys think Wello would want to hurt someone intentionally? I think that foul was unintentional,” Momowei added.
Momowei knows
Of course, in the context of unsportsmanlike fouls, Momowei could be called somewhat of a repeat offender.
The 6-foot-9 big has committed four unsportsmanlike fouls through his UE career, divided to two each in the past two seasons.
For Lingolingo, it resulted in his ejection. For Momowei, suspensions and disqualifications.
“Same thing happened my first two seasons. I was suspended back-to-back, you know. I lost the games, I lost awards,” Momowei told SPIN.ph afterwards, as league rules back then stated that a player who is suspended is automatically disqualified from individual awards.
Though they committed the same offense, Momowei was quick to come to the defense of his teammate - with the former insisting the latter isn’t a reckless player.
As he put it, “Wello is a great guy. It’s just so sad to see that it happened that way. But I’m sure he’s going to learn from me.”
Half a day after the on-court incident, it's now known that Baclaan sustained an MCL tear, forcing him to miss the rest of La Salle's campaign.
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