Safe to say, University of Santo Tomas has exceeded expectations through six games in the UAAP Season 87 Collegiate Men’s Basketball Tournament.
As the first round nears its conclusion, the Growling Tigers hold an even 3-3 slate, sharing fourth place with the Adamson Soaring Falcons.
Notably, UST has secured convincing wins against University of the East, Ateneo de Manila University, and National University, showcasing its potential in this competitive season.
However, UST faced challenges as well, suffering a stunning loss to Adamson and dropping both outings against Season 86 finalists, University of the Philippines and De La Salle University.
Despite these setbacks, the Growling Tigers displayed grit and determination in their matches against the top two teams in the UAAP.
For Malian center Mo Tounkara, this resilience is something to be proud of, even in defeat.
“We’re here to compete against the top teams, and I think against La Salle and UP, since they’re the top two teams, we had a good game against both of them,” the 6-foot-8 big man remarked after the Growling Tigers’ 81-70 loss to the Fighting Maroons on Wednesday night.
Tounkara also acknowledged the need for UST to regroup quickly after experiencing a two-game skid.
Emphasizing the importance of addressing their turnover and rebounding issues, Tounkara noted that these factors were pivotal in their losses to the Green Archers and Fighting Maroons.
In their game against La Salle, UST recorded a season-low 29 rebounds along with 16 turnovers.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
Similarly, they committed 24 turnovers while grabbing 35 rebounds in their loss to UP.
“I think we had the first two quarters, but we didn’t start our third quarter very well against UP. I think that’s the main point. We had a couple of turnovers that we weren’t able to recover from. We had turnovers; that’s the main point for the game,” Tounkara explained.
Looking ahead, Tounkara is optimistic about the second round.
“We’ll try to fix those two things and prepare more for the second round,” he expressed.
“The second round is going to be fun for sure.”
Despite an ankle sprain he sustained during the fourth quarter against the Fighting Maroons, the Growling Tigers’ big man remains focused on their upcoming match-up against the Tamaraws, led by Gambian center Mo Konateh.
Konateh has been making waves in the league, averaging an impressive 17.0 rebounds per contest.
“We’re gonna work on it, like improve our rebounding and control our turnovers. Mo’s a really good player; I appreciate how he plays the game, but it’s going to be good also to play against them. I think FEU is a pretty good team,” Tounkara concluded.
