
UP shoots for No. 5 vs UST in UAAP
UNIVERSITY of the Philippines shoots for its fifth consecutive win against University of Santo Tomas today in the UAAP men’s basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Christian Luanzon, coach Goldwin Monteverde’s trusted lead assistant, is not expecting the undefeated Fighting Maroons to have a cakewalk in the 4 p.m. showdown with the winless Growling Tigers.
“That’s a word you rarely hear sa locker room namin, being ‘comfortable’, because no team in this league is a pushover,” said Luanzon after UP pulled off a 80-76 overtime win over struggling Far Eastern University last Wednesday.
The Growling Tigers are mired at the bottom of the standings with the Tamaraws at 0-4.
“Ang mahirap sa ganyang team for example FEU and UST, when you come to play them, number one dala nila yung school pride nila, pangalawa yung gutom manalo nandiyan eh,” said Luanzon.
“Napakaimportante sa amin not to take anyone lightly, to play confidently but at the same time giving our opponents yung respect that is due to them,” he added.
The Growling Tigers are still looking for clues on how to give coach Pido Jarencio his first victory in his second UAAP tour of duty.
Except for a 76-79 overtime loss to Adamson, all of UST’s defeats were double-digits, including last Wednesday’s 69-87 beating from the hands of National University.
Ateneo; meanwhile, seeks to stay within the top four range as it tangles with FEU at 2 p.m.
The Blue Eagles are locked in a three-way tie with the Falcons and University of the East in fourth place at 2-2.
Coach Tab Baldwin continues to face the challenge of filling the void left by former MVP Ange Kouame, Dave Ildefonso and BJ Andrade, who were instrumental in Ateneo’s championship run late last year, after four games.
“We ultimately want complete players. We want players who are not a liability at one end of the court. I think every player has at a minimum been a guy who’s tough at one end and doesn’t hurt us at the end of the floor and then grows from there,” said Baldwin.
Games Saturday:
(Mall of Asia Arena)
9 a.m. – Ateneo vs FEU (Women)
11 a.m. – UP vs UST (Women)
2 p.m. – Ateneo vs FEU (Men)
4 p.m. – UP vs UST (Men)