UNIVERSITY of Santo Tomas sealed a place in the Final Four and assured itself of at least a playoff for a twice-to-beat advantage with an 87-75 win over University of the East on Thursday in the UAAP seniors basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The Tigers finished the elimination round at 10-4 (win-loss), the team's best record since Pido Jarencio took over as head coach in 2006, as they bolstered their status as a championship contenders.
“Naka-10 wins kami, ibig sabihin pwede kami hanggang dulo,” Jarencio said.
Jeric Teng had 26 points while Karim Abdul, one of the leading contenders for the MVP award, had 22 points, nine rebounds and three blocks.
Teng scored seven points off UE’s turnovers in a 13-0 run that helped the Tigers break open a close 60-57 game in the fourth period.
“Kaya kami bad start dahil napakalamig sa loob (in the arena). Kahit ako, nakatayo ako, nanlalamig ako. Mabuti nakuha namin ‘yung bearings namin,” said Jarencio.
The Red Warriors finished with a 3-11 win-loss card in a season that saw the return of Boycie Zamar as head coach midway through the campaign.
The scores:
UST 87 — Teng 26, Abdul 22, Mariano 15, Bautista 15, Ferrer 4, Lo 2, Fortuna 2, Vigil 1, Pe 0, Daquioag 0, Afuang 0.
UE 75 — Sumang 22, Sumido 19, Santos 16, Villarias 8, Hernandez 5, Flores 3, Javier 2, Belleza 0, Olayon 0, Duran 0.
Quarterscores: 10-12; 32-22; 55-49; 87-75.
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