The University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons struggled against the National University (NU) Bulldogs to tally their first double defeat in the UAAP Season 87 Basketball Tournament on Sunday, Nov. 3, at the University of Santo Tomas Quadricentennial Pavilion.
The men’s squad remains in the second spot with a 9-2 record, while their women’s counterparts drop to sixth seed with a 3-8 slate as the end of the elimination round nears.
In a rough patch
Marking a full reversal of their round one encounter, the twice-to-beat-seeking UP Men’s Basketball Team (MBT) suffered their second loss of the season after a major upset against the last-seeded NU Bulldogs via a 47-67 beatdown.
The maroon shirts’ offensive lapses proved costly as the blue-and-gold squad scored 23 points off 30 turnovers paired with UP firing blanks all game long, hitting only 17 out of 65 shots from the field.
The opening minutes showcased a tightly contested battle between both squads until a layup by Jake Figueroa fueled a 0-12 run for the Bulldogs.
As UP’s Chicco Briones attempted to narrow the gap with a three-pointer, Reinhard Jumamoy swiftly countered with a trey of his own, followed by a sequence of charity shots from both sides to close the first frame at 8-24.
The Fighting Maroons struck back with a series of baskets from Francis Lopez, Reyland Torres, Aldous Torculas, and Quentin Millora-Brown, cutting the deficit to nine, 15-24, midway in the second chapter.
However, the Bulldogs proved to be untamed as they quickly returned the favor with a barrage of threes in the third quarter, inflating their lead to an impressive 27 points entering the last salvo.
The maroon shirts tried to play catch up in the final frame, but it was too little, too late against NU’s commanding lead.
While the twice-to-beat advantage toward the Final Four is within striking distance, UP is yet to seal the deal.
Lone double-digit scorer Torculas led State U with 13 points and five rebounds, followed by JD Cagulangan’s 8 markers and six boards.
UP head coach Goldwin Monteverde emphasized that the team will use the loss as a learning opportunity moving forward.
“Kahit sa practice araw-araw naman sa amin final four o championship. Kumbaga, binibigay namin lahat ng makakaya namin everyday. So whatever comes with it, kung ano dapat naming matutunan, para sa amin it’s gonna be good for us also … As human beings, how to improve on things both sa game, at the same time, character-wise,” Monteverde said during the post-game press conference.
On the flip side, NU Bulldogs Patrick Yu and Figueroa tallied 17 and 11 markers, respectively, to keep their flickering Final Four hopes alive.
Hard-fought fall
The UP Women’s Basketball Team (WBT) almost wrote a different story with the NU Lady Bulldogs but fell short when it mattered most at their own expense, 59-64.
State U’s deep roster played a crucial role in their early control of the game, outscoring NU off the bench 34-23. Yet turnovers took a toll in the end game as it opened the doors for the opposition, capitalizing 22 points from State U’s errors.
The Fighting Maroons started out strong, establishing their biggest lead in the first quarter courtesy of an Erika Jimenez three-pointer to push it to 17-6.
UP grappled with misfires, allowing the blue-and-gold squad to cut the lead to just 4 points by the end of the second quarter, as Camille Clarin and Kristine Cayabyab took charge of the scoreboard for the Bulldogs.
The latter half featured a back-and-forth affair between the two teams which paved the way for both squads to score 19 points apiece in the third salvo, 48-44.
With NU regaining momentum, last season’s silver medalists surged ahead, thanks to back-to-back triples from Clarin that sparked a 10-0 run for the team.
The maroon shirts attempted to bounce back as Kaye Pesquera took the driver’s seat, slicing the deficit to 59-60. But Clarin drilled a clutch trey with 45 seconds left to diffuse the late UP explosion.
Pesquera spearheaded the team with 16 points and six rebounds, while Ozar engineered 9 markers along with nine boards.
Meanwhile, Clarin and Karl Ann Pingol unleashed 16 and 14 markers for the blue-and-gold, respectively.
The Fighting Maroons seek to bounce back from their losses as they go against the DLSU Archers on Nov. 10 at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
UP MBT QUARTER SCORES: 8-24, 20-34, 31-55, 47-67
UP WBT QUARTER SCORES: 17-8, 29-25, 48-44, 59-64
