Harold Alarcon carried the University of the Philippines on his back to escape a misfiring University of Santo Tomas, 89-88, and gain some breathing room at second place in the UAAP Season 88 Men’s Basketball Tournament at the SM Mall of Asia Arena on Wednesday.
Alarcon scored the Fighting Maroons’ final eight points, including a fadeaway go-ahead jumper with 24.3 seconds left.
The Growling Tigers had three chances to steal the win. Amiel Acido missed a contested, off-balanced layup and then an open floater before a loose ball scramble led to a jump ball, giving UST possession with 3.6 seconds remaining.
On the final play, Collins Akowe received the inbound pass down low but fumbled the ball, allowing UP to escape with a hard-earned victory despite committing 38 fouls that gave UST 52 free-throw attempts. However, the Tigers failed to capitalize, missing 24 from the stripe.
“Having started slow kanina sa game and being able to come back before matapos ‘yung first half, sa akin defensively malaki rin ‘yung inangat ng depensa namin… ‘Yung mga ganitong klaseng game, ‘yung tough games na ganito, it will really prepare us for bigger games ahead,” said head coach Goldwin Monteverde, as UP avenged its season-opening 20-point loss to UST.
UST led by as many as 15 points early in the second quarter, 36-21, but UP clawed back to trail by just two at halftime, 45-47.
With the win, UP improved to 7-3, securing solo second and moving a full game ahead of third-running De La Salle University (6-4) in the race for the second twice-to-beat slot in the Final Four.
“Kinausap lang din kami ni coach Gold nang maayos sa dugout. Sa fourth quarter, whatever na hinaharap sa akin ng defense, kukunin ko lang eh,” said Alarcon, who finished with 22 points—16 in the second half—along with five rebounds, four assists, and three steals.
Rey Remogat added 19 points, three rebounds, three assists, and two steals, while Migs Yñiguez chipped in 11 points on a perfect 3-of-3 shooting from beyond the arc.
UP aims to extend its winning streak to four games when it faces also-ran University of the East on Saturday at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion.
Meanwhile, UST’s skid stretched to four games, dropping to 5-5 and creating a triple-tie for fourth with Ateneo de Manila University and Adamson University.
Nigerian rookie Collins Akowe posted a monster double-double of 26 points and 16 rebounds but shot just 10-of-20 from the free-throw line. Nic Cabañero added 18 points but also went only 3-of-6 from the stripe.
The Growling Tigers will look to snap their slump on Sunday against Far Eastern University at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Scores:
UP (89) – Alarcon 22, Remogat 19, Yñiguez 11, Belmonte 9, Nnoruka 6, Palanca 5, Stevens 5, Bayla 4, Fortea 4, Abadiano 2, Torres 2, Alter 0, Briones 0.
UST (88) – Akowe 26, Cabañero 18, Acido 10, Buenaflor 9, Paranada 8, Llemit 8, Estacio 5, Padrigao 2, Crisostomo 2, Laure 0, Calum 0, Danting 0.
Quarterscores: 21-26, 45-47, 68-63, 89-88
