By WAYLON GALVEZ
UNIVERSITY of Santo Tomas won its first match under new coach Aldin Ayo yesterday at the expense of Far Eastern University, 76-74, in the 81st UAAP basketball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Marvin Lee and Renzo Subido provided the big shots down the stretch as UST rebounded from a 68-61 setback in its season debut last Saturday, and dealt FEU its first defeat in two matches.
Lee converted a basket with less than three minutes left that gave the Tigers a three-point lead, 74-71. After the two teams traded missed shots, Dexter Zamora drained a shot clock beating jumper with 18.5 seconds left to give UST a 76-71 advantage.
In the return play, Hubert Cani buried a triple to cut UST’s lead to only two points, 76-74, but after a turnover by Lee, Arvin Tolentino missed a game-winning three-point shot at the buzzer.
Subido led UST with 18 points as the Tigers improved to 1-1.
Lee contributed 13 points, four assists and two steals while rookie Joshua Marcos added 12 off the bench.
“We’re a very young team, our team is composed of nine rookies,” said an emotional Ayo, who led De La Salle University to the title in 2016.
“Our rookies, they’re still adjusting, and it’s not just about the game. Good thing is they’re playing well and good result for us. That’s just what we want, as the season progresses we can make the adjustments,” added Ayo, who took over from Boy Sablan where UST went 1-13.
FEU’s 6-foot-8 center Prince Orizu was a dominant force as he collected a career best 25 points with 15 rebounds and three shot blocks. Cani added 15 points and Richard Escoto had 13 points.
In the other game, Ateneo outplayed University of the Philippines, 87-79.
The scores
UST 76 – Subido 18, Lee 13, Marcos 12, Akomo 10, Huang 9, Cansino 7, Zamora 5, Mahinay 2, Consejo 0, Enrique 0, Bonleon 0 .
FEU 74 – Orizu 25, Cani 15, Escoto 13, Tolentino 5, Comboy 5, Parker 4, Tuffin 2, Ebona 2, Stockton 2, Inigo 0, Gonzalez 0.
Quarters: 15-17, 39-32, 56-52, 76-74.
ATENEO 87 – Ravena 17, Asistio 16, Kouame 14, Ma. Nieto 12, Mi. Nieto 7, Go 5, Mendoza 5, Wong 5, Verano 4, Black 2, Belangel 0, Navarro 0
UP 79 – Ju. Gomez de Liano 29, Desiderio 15, Manzo 9, Akhuetie 8, Ja. Gomez de Liano 5, Murrell 4, Dario 3, Gozum 2, Prado 2, Vito 2, Jaboneta 0, Lim 0, Spencer 0, Tungcab 0.
Quarters: 25-24, 46-43, 67-58, 87-79.
