Adamson University staged an upset to close out the first round, stunning the University of Santo Tomas, 69-59, in the UAAP Season 88 Men’s Basketball Tournament on Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Soaring Falcons took control in the second quarter, unleashing a decisive 16-3 run that broke a 22-all deadlock and gave them a 38-25 cushion at halftime.
Adamson then held firm the rest of the way, denying every comeback attempt by the Growling Tigers, who managed to cut the deficit to as close as five points but could not sustain the rally.
The Falcons secured their second straight win to end the first round at 3-4, good for solo sixth place.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
“Malaking bagay ‘yung mga ganoong runs because a team like us, when you play the bigger programs, hindi puwedeng laging close games sa huli,” said Adamson head coach Nash Racela.
“Sometimes nga even when we were up sa fourth quarter, nahahabol pa kami. Yun ang target namin, as much as we can, we want to have a lead up to the end game. Ngayon nakatulong, we were able to manage it better today.”
When UST trimmed the gap to 50-55 after a floater from Kyle Paranada, the Falcons turned to Cedrick Manzano and Ray Allen Torres. The two combined to rebuild a double-digit cushion, 60-50, with 6:53 remaining.
“Para sa akin, ‘yung team effort namin ay nandoon mula first hanggang fourth quarter. Hindi kami bumitaw,” said AJ Fransman, who spearheaded Adamson’s balanced attack with 18 points, including three triples.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
Manzano provided steady inside presence with 12 points and eight rebounds, while OJ Ojarikre contributed two points, 11 rebounds, and four blocks.
Their collective effort helped limit UST’s dominant big man Collins Akowe to just 10 points on 3-of-11 shooting.
The loss halted UST’s three-game winning streak, dropping the Tigers to 5-2 in solo second place.
National University, which earlier outlasted Ateneo de Manila University in overtime, claimed the top spot at 6-1.
Nic Cabañero led the Growling Tigers with 23 points, five rebounds, and two steals, while Akowe hauled down 16 boards despite being shackled on offense.
Forthsky Padrigao struggled to find his rhythm, finishing with only seven points on a 2-of-9 shooting clip.
The Scores:
AdU (69) – Fransman 18, Manzano 12, Torres 10, Erolon 7, A. Ronzone 7, Montebon 6, Anabo 4, Ojakire 2, Medina 2, Barcelona 1, Jaymalin 0, Cañete 0, Perez 0, C. Ronzone 0.
UST (59) – Cabañero 23, Akowe 10, Padrigao 7, Calum 6, Llemit 5, Paranada 3, Crisostomo 3, Laure 2, Acido 0, Buenaflor 0, Estacio 0, Danting 0.
Quarterscores: 16-16, 38-25, 53-43, 69-59
