By ADRIAN STEWART CO
Negrense Harold Alarcon tried to rally University of the Philippines (UP), but his efforts went for naught as the Fighting Maroons fell to University of Santo Tomas (UST), 87-67, in the UAAP Season 88 men’s basketball tournament at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion in Manila on Sunday night, September 21.
Alarcon finished with 11 points, including a personal scoring burst in the third quarter that allowed UP to trim a 14-point halftime deficit to just seven.
The Negrense guard also contributed on defense and playmaking, providing energy that momentarily kept the Maroons within striking distance.
But UST had too much firepower behind rookie standout Collins Akowe, who posted 29 points and 17 rebounds in a dominant performance.
Kyle Paranada supplied 18 points, while Nicael Cabañero and Angelo Crisostomo chipped in nine and eight markers, respectively.
The Tigers built a 57-43 lead at the break and, despite Alarcon’s spark that fueled UP’s mini-run, quickly reasserted control with Akowe powering a decisive counterattack.
Mark Belmonte topped UP with 12 points, while Jacob Bayla followed with 11 as the defending champions absorbed their first loss of the season.
Meanwhile, the National University (NU) Bulldogs leaned on a strong third-quarter push to dispatch the University of the East Red Warriors, 72-57.
Veterans Jake Figueroa, Steve Nash Enriquez and Jolo Manansala anchored the Bulldogs in their farewell season, while returnee John and young guns Paul Francisco and Kenshin Padrones added firepower.
The Bulldogs turned a slim 39-34 halftime lead into a blowout after unleashing a 14-1 run early in the third quarter.
Omar John and Figueroa provided the spark with back-to-back dunks before Figueroa buried a three-pointer that widened the gap to 53-35.
NU kept control the rest of the way, with contributions from Tebol Garcia, Angelo Santiago and CJ Palacielo pushing the margin to 23 points midway through the final frame./ASC, WDJ
UST 87 — Akowe 29, Paranada 18, Cabañero 9, Crisostomo 8, Buenaflor 7, Calum 4, Llemit 3, Estacio 3, Acido 2, Laure 2, Sevilla 2, Bangco 0, Manding 0, Bucsit 0, Danting 0.
UP 67 — Belmonte 12, Alarcon 11, Bayla 11, Bayla 6, Torres 6, Nnoruka 5, Fortea 4, Felicilda 4, Abadiano 2, Alter 2, Palanca 2, Briones 2, Stevens 0.
Quarterscores: 31-19, 57-43, 70-57, 87-67.