By ADRIAN STEWART CO

Gilas Pilipinas Youth standout Zain Mahmood has committed to join the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Growling Tigers ahead of the UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball tournament later this year.

According to a report by The Varsitarian, the Filipino-Canadian big man has agreed to join the squad of Growling Tigers head coach Alfredo “Pido” Jarencio, after finishing his high school with Maranatha High School.

In his lone stint with the national boys’ basketball team so far, Mahmood posted 11.3 points and 5.8 rebounds in the FIBA U18 Asian Championship held in Tehran, Iran last August 2022.

Prior to his surprise move to the Growling Tigers, the 6-foot-7 Mahmood was previously associated with head coach Tab Baldwin’s Ateneo de Manila University Blue Eagles.

The 18-year-old Mahmood is a worthy addition to the Growling Tigers, which had problems with their shorthanded frontline during the past few UAAP men’s basketball seasons.

The Growling Tigers, which were orphaned by the mid-season departure of Adama Faye last year, ended UAAP Season 86 as the second-worst team in rebounds (41.5 per game) and blocks (2.64 per game), while winning only two of its 14 games.

Mahmood will be eligible to suit up for five years beginning Season 87, together with other incoming recruits Rence Padrigao, Kyle Paranada, Geremy Robinson, Ashon Andrews, Ice Danting, and Leland Estacio.

The Filipino-Canadian big man will share the frontline rotation with Capiznon center Christian Manaytay, Echo Laure and foreign student-athlete Alfred Osang in the upcoming UAAP season.

Aside from Mahmood, the Growling Tigers also secured the commitment of former Far Eastern University Tamaraws gunner Renzo Competente over the weekend.

Competente, Mahmood’s former teammate in Gilas Pilipinas Youth, is expected to be eligible for the Growling Tigers for three seasons beginning in Season 88 next year./ASC, WDJ