By: Jan Marcus Montevirgen
University of Santo Tomas and De La Salle University dominated their respective pools during Day 1 of the UAAP Esports NBA2K24 Tournament on Tuesday at the Doreen Fernandez Black Box, Areté Ateneo in Quezon City.
Teletigers Esports Club’s Erix Daniel Delos Reyes and Viridis Arcus Esports’ Kegan Audric Yap both finished strong in all of their matches, each gathering 4 points in Pool A and Pool B, respectively.
Reflecting on their impressive performance, Teletigers NBA2K head coach Augusto De Jesus III revealed the key to their success: avoiding scrimmages with rival universities and instead playing against top players from outside the campus.
“Isa lang naman, hindi kami sumali sa mga scrim nila. Never. Palagi nila kaming ini-invite pero never kami sumali. Binatak ko talaga sila sa mga malalakas na Quick Game player. Yun lang yung main strategy namin,” said De Jesus.
Meanwhile, despite limited preparation time, Viridis Arcus NBA2K head coach Rial Polog Jr. expressed satisfaction with their Day 1 performance in Pool B, crediting their six hours of daily practice for the result.
“Happy ako na yung gameplan namin nag-work naman, yung training ng ilang months. Yun lang, sana magtuloy-tuloy siya hanggang bukas,” said Polog, a member of the E-Gilas team that competes in the FIBA Esports circuit.
UST’s Delos Reyes bested Ateneo de Manila University’s Paolo Jesus Medina with a final score of 52-47, De La Salle University’s Jose Doniel Luis Paraduco 54-47, Far Eastern University’s Nehemiah Maninit 65-44, and National University’s Jarell Zaki Allaga 72-34.
He relied heavily on the Boston Celtics, picking them three times, while using the Milwaukee Bucks squad against the Tamaraws Esports.
(C) UAAP Season 87 Media Team
For La Salle’s Yap, he defeated University of the East’s Ceanne Gabriel Manalastas 54-39, NU’s John Michael Constantino 55-25, FEU’s Justine Lorence Lagmay 62-32, and Adamson University’s Remigio Aguinaldo III 59-36.
He picked the Los Angeles Lakers twice, against the Zenith Esports and the Bulldogs, while choosing the Boston Celtics against the Tamaraws Esports and the Falcons.
In Pool A, UP trailed the España-based squad with 3 points. FEU, La Salle, and Ateneo each earned 2 points, while UE managed only 1 point. Adamson and NU were unable to secure any points, losing all of their matches on the first day.
In Pool B, every university, except for UP, managed to earn at least one point. La Salle led the pool, followed by UST with 3 points, FEU and NU with 2 points each, and Ateneo, Adamson, and UP with 1 point each.
To keep their semifinal hopes alive, Adamson and NU’s Team A and UP’s Team B must win all of their matches tomorrow.
The top two in each pool that will qualify for the playoffs will be decided on Wednesday, at the same venue.
