By NIKOLE JAVIER
Reigning MVP Malick Diouf helped power University of the Philippines past feisty University of the East, 79-72, and into its fifth straight Final Four appearance in the UAAP Season 86 men’s basketball tournament on Wednesday, Nov. 8, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Fighting Maroons repulsed the Red Warriors’ spirited challenge to get back on the winning track following an 88-79 defeat to La Salle last week that hiked their record to 9-2.
That was enough for the Maroons to secure the first semis berth this season while pushing the Warriors to the brink of elimination with a 4-8 mark.
Diouf, whose services was sorely missed by UP in its previous loss, returned with a bang after posting a double-double performance of 19 points on an efficient 7-of-10 shooting to go along with 15 rebounds.
CJ Cansino had his fair share of glory with 17 points.
UP started slow, falling behind 21-17, but recovered mightily in the second quarter to seize the momentum.
Meantime, defending champion Ateneo snapped a three-game losing run with a 67-59 win over also-ran UST for a 5-6 win-loss tally.
With the result, the Growling Tigers, in turn, are officially eliminated from the Final Four race for the third straight time.
Kai Ballungay finished with a double-double performance of 15 points and 14 rebounds after struggling to find his form in the previous games.
Chris Koon and Jaren Brown, for their part, tallied 12 and 10 points, respectively.
Ateneo built a commanding 43-29 lead at halftime, which proved too much for the Tigers to overcome.
Mason Amos’s triple gave the Blue Eagles their biggest advantage of 34-16 in the match.
The scores:
First Game
ATENEO 67 – Ballungay 15, Koon 12, Brown 10, Amos 8, Celis 8, Obasa 7, Nieto 3, Quitevis 2, Chiu 2, Credo 0, Lazaro 0, Espinosa 0, Gomez 0.
UST 59 – Cabañero 16, Pangilinan 13, Duremdes 9, Manalang 6, Magdangal 5, Laure 4, Llemit 3, Manaytay 2, Calum 1, Crisostomo 0, Moore 0, Gesalem 0, Lazarte 0.
Quarters: 22-12, 43-29, 50-43, 67-59.
Second Game
UP 79 – Diouf 19, Cansino 17, Cagulangan 9, Lopez 8, Abadiano 8, Alarcon 4, Torres 3, Pablo 3, Felicilda 2, Torculas 2, Belmonte 2, Alter 2, Fortea 0.
UE 72 – Cruz-Dumont 19, Momowei 14, Remogat 12, Sawat 11, Maglupay 4, Galang 4, Tulabut 2, Lingolingo 2, Cabero 2, Gilbuena 2.
Quarters: 17-21, 43-38, 60-55, 79-72.
