GANI Stevens landed body blows early before the rest of the University of the Philippines connected with plenty of haymakers to drub University of the East, 101-70, in UAAP Season 89 on Sunday at the Blue Eagle Gym.
Stevens made his mark right from tip-off, going on a perfect 5-of-5 shooting spree from the field for 13 quick points to give the Fighting Maroons an early foothold.
The rest of State U took it from there, scorching the nets in the second half to stretch its advantage to as large as 26 points and see off a Red Warriors side that has kept contenders on edge despite its winless campaign.
UP fly
More importantly, the decision extended UP’s win run to five, the longest active streak as of now, for a 7-2 standing - just ahead of idle National U at 6-2.
Veejay Pre stuffed the stat sheet with 14 points, six rebounds and five assists in the Fighting Maroons' balanced attack, while Choi Palanca and Elliot Dimaculangan delivered timely baskets for 12 and nine markers, respectively.
“I stayed ready lang po kasi kinakausap naman po ako palagi ni coach Gold na maging ready. Ready to play lang lagi,” Palanca said.
Toper Lagat, as always, paced UE with 23 points, but his steady offensive production still couldn’t stop his the red-and-white from losing for the ninth time in as many games, and 29th overall dating back to 2024.
The Scores:
UP 101 — Pre 14, Stevens 13, Palanca 12, Dimaculangan 9, Ududo 9, Franco 8, Alter 8, Yñiguez 7, Andres 6, Bayla 5, Payosing 4, Maga 4, Briones 2, Remogat 0.
UE 70 — Lagat 23, Tañedo 11, Jimenez 9, Dungca 9, Edoukou 4, Cruz-Dumont 4, Sabroso 3, Vasquez 3, Mascariñas 2, Robles 2, Santos 0, Javier 0, Perez 0, Apostol 0.
Quarters: 29-17, 51-40, 75-59, 101-70.
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