Far Eastern University-Diliman seized solo first place in the UAAP Season 88 High School Boys Basketball Tournament with a 69-61 victory over De La Salle Zobel on Sunday afternoon at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Manila.
Do-it-all guard Khean Esperanza starred with 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting, along with five rebounds, one assist, and one steal, as the Baby Tamaraws carried over their first-round momentum and cruised to their sixth consecutive victory.
Meanwhile, Adamson University weathered a 33-point explosion from Bruce Tubongbanua, carving out a 72-64 triumph over the University of the Philippines Integrated School to seize solo fourth place in the eight-team field.
With the win, FEU-D improved to a 7-1 win-loss record to claim solo first place, creating separation from joint second-placers Ateneo de Manila University and National University Nazareth School, who both hold 6-2 cards. The Blue Eagles earlier absorbed a narrow 78-81 loss to the Shaun Lucido-led Bullpups.
Adamson, on the other hand, returned to the win column and improved to a 4-4 record, separating itself from the three-way tie for fifth place involving defending champion University of Santo Tomas, University of the East, and DLSZ, who all sit at 3-5.
“Number one nga kami ngayon, syempre masaya kami na we’re on top, pero the way we played today, nakakalungkot. Ang sama ng laro namin. We did not play how we usually play today, pero masaya pa rin kami na nakuha na namin ang number one spot,” Baby Tamaraws head coach Mike Reyes said.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
DLSZ stayed within striking distance as a Kio Favis triple and a Ken Atienza layup trimmed the deficit to 49-42 with 3:21 left in the third period.
However, FEU-D surged at the perfect moment, stringing together eight straight points—capped by a six-point spurt from Jastien Dagcutan—to restore a commanding 15-point lead, 57-42.
The Junior Archers mounted a final stand as a Jake Alpapara layup and a Favis and-one mid-range jumper pulled DLSZ within nine, 63-54, with 4:20 left to play. However, the trio of Esperanza, Cabs Cabonilas, and JB Cagurungan delivered the final blows that sealed the Baby Tamaraws’ seventh win.
Cagurungan finished with 12 points and three rebounds, while Cabonilas was limited to six points on 2-of-4 shooting but added five rebounds and three assists.
Dagcutan also scored six points, alongside two rebounds and one steal, while Marc Burgos, Yosef Raneses, Adi Alagaban, and Prince Carino chipped in four points each in the winning effort.
For DLSZ, Maco Dabao led the Junior Archers with 15 points, five rebounds, four steals, and two assists, while Nino Ferrer supplied 13 points, seven rebounds, two steals, two blocks, and one assist.
Atienza finished with nine points, eight rebounds, three assists, and one steal, while Alpapara contributed eight points and one rebound.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
In the later game, the Baby Falcons overwhelmed the Fighting Maroons with a dominant 24-11 third-quarter performance—capped by two straight Renzy Saygo layups and an and-one layup from Kevin Frogoso—to turn a slim 33-31 halftime advantage into a comfortable 72-58 cushion heading into the payoff period.
UPIS attempted to rally as Tubongbanua tallied eight points during a 10-2 start to the fourth quarter, but the trio of Kieff Iledan, Saygo, and Iledan converted inside attempts that restored a 14-point, 72-58 advantage with 2:42 remaining.
“In-emphasize namin yan sa viewing na sa first two quarters, dikit ‘yan ‘eh, pero pagdating ng third quarter, lalayo dahil mararamdaman nila yung sense of urgency. Pero para sa amin, why not have that urgency in the first, second, third, and fourth quarter? For a young team like them, growing pains ito,” Adamson head coach Mike Fermin said.
Iledan shined with 13 points on 6-of-8 shooting on top of three assists, two rebounds, one steal, and one block, while Frogoso provided 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting, along with two rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
Saygo added nine points, four rebounds, one assist, and one steal, while Mac Jenodia, Chrys Gomez, and Fran Flores chipped in seven points each.
(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team
For the Fighting Maroons, Tubongbanua starred with 33 points on 12-of-16 shooting, along with four rebounds and one steal, while Jhustin Hallare had 14 points, eight rebounds, five assists, one steal, and one block.
The Scores:
Third Game:
FEU-D (69) – Esperanza 17, Cagurungan 12, Cabonilas 6, Dagcutan 6, Burgos 4, Raneses 4, Alagaban 4, Carino 4, Hall 3, Gaye 3, Dulin 3, Enriquez 2, Sohm 1, J. Santos 0, D. Santos 0.
DLSZ (61) – Dabao 15, Ferrer 13, Atienza 9, Ja. Alpapara 8, Arejola 5, Favis 5, Borrero 4, Dimayuga 1, Luna 1, Tan 0, Llamas 0.
Quarterscores: 22-18, 42-31, 59-47, 69-61.
Fourth Game:
AdU (72) – Iledan 13, Frogoso 12, Saygo 9, Jenodia 7, Gomez 7, Flores 7, Fongtong 6, Artango 5, Babad 4, Bautista 2.
UPIS (64) – Tubongbanua 33, Hallare 14, Poquiz 7, Lugatiman 4, Labao 4, Rosete 2, Addatu 0, Pascual 0, Hernandez 0, Manguerra 0.
Quarterscores: 14-13, 33-31, 57-42, 72-64.
