ALL it took was 18 minutes of action for Kyle Paranada to wax hot, drop 19 points and steer España to yet another victory in UAAP Season 88.
His sterling 7-of-8 shooting clip stood front and center in a late fourth-quarter storm that towed University of Santo Tomas past Far Eastern University, 92-80, on Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Clutch shots from Nic Cabanero and Gelo Crisostomo aided the Growling Tigers in mustering a 12-3 game-winning tear for their fifth win in six games, grabbing a share of the league lead with National U at 5-1.
The black-and-gold duo posted 14 markers apiece, with Crisostomo shooting 62.5-percent from the field to steady UST's turbulent ship in the face of a late Tamaraws charge.
Collins Akowe won a heated duel with his equally imposing counterpart in Mo Konateh by firing a 14-point, 11-rebound double-double.
Championship or bUST
This becomes the Growling Tigers' best start to a UAAP campaign since Season 78 in 2015 when it zoomed to an 8-1 start before falling a win short in the finals against, ironically, FEU.
Konateh's 19-piece and 11 boards backed yet another hot-shooting night from Janrey Pasaol who churned out 22 points and six assists.
Now on another two-game skid, the Tamaraws find themselves stuck in seventh with just one victory in six matches before taking on winless University of the East to finish the first round.
The Scores:
UST 92 - Paranada 19, Cabañero 14, Crisostomo 14, Akowe 12, Padrigao 11, Llemit 7, Buenaflor 6, Danting 6, Acido 3, Estacio 0, Calum 0, Bucsit 0, Manding 0, Bangco 0, Sevilla 0, Laure 0.
FEU 80 - Pasaol 22, Konateh 19, Mongcopa 11, Bautista 11, Owens 8, Daa 3, Felipe 3, Salangsang 3, Jones 0, Macapagal 0, Ona 0, Bagunu 0.
Quarters: 25-21, 46-47, 63-62, 92-80.
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