By MARK REY MONTEJO
Francis Nnoruka and Noy Remogat formed a lethal 1-2 punch as University of the Philippines ended Ateneo’s perfect run with an 83-69 win in the UAAP Season 88 men’s basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City Wednesday, Oct. 8.
After a neck-and-neck contest in the first half, the Fighting Maroons seized control in the second half with a decisive run through the efforts of Nnoruka and Remogat.
The duo sparked a scoring barrage to raise their lead to 19, 79-60, en route to their third straight win in five games.
Ian Espinosa and Divine Adili led the Tab Baldwin-mentore crew’s comeback attempt, but their efforts were not enough as the deficit was just too big to overcome.
With that, Ateneo absorbed its first loss after winning its first four games capped by a big win over longtime rival La Salle.
“’Yong preparation namin for this game lagi naming pinaguusapan it’s just one part of it,” said UP head coach Goldwin Monteverde. “But you know, transferring it to play the way yung players execute our offense at the same time play as a team with defensively.”
“I think yun yung malaking pagbabago namin and sa akin siguro, we just have to keep it up lang,” he added.
The 6-foot-9 center collected 28 points, nine rebounds, four steals and one block, while Remogat registered 20 points on top of six rebounds, eight assists, and two steals.
“Siguro blessed lang din talaga ako kasi ‘yon nga hindi naman biro ‘yong mga pinagdaanan namin as a team noong first two games,” said Remogat. “Kaya talagang pinagigihan lang namin as a team and mas nag-focus kami sa growth namin and mas tinama lang namin ‘yong mga dapat naming itama.”
Harold Alarcon, who ignited the spurt in the third quarter, dazzled as well for UP after listing 17 points which went with four rebounds, five assists, and one steal.
Shawn Tuano chalked 17 points to spearhead Ateneo’s offense, while Kymani Ladi had 15. Jared Bahay and Divine Adili added nine and eight points, respectively.
UP’s next showdown is set against Far Eastern University on Sunday, Oct. 12, at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion, while Ateneo shoots for a recovery win versus University of Santo Tomas Saturday, Oct. 11, at its own turf in Quezon City.
The scores:
UP (83) – Nnoruka 28, Remogat 20, Alarcon 17, Stevens 6, Yniguez 6, Abadiano 3, Torres 3, Bayla 0, Fortea 0, Palanca 0, Briones 0, Alter 0.
Ateneo (69) – Tuano 17, Ladi 15, Bahay 9, Adili 8, Espinosa 7, Ramos 6, Escobar 4, Lazo 3, Bongo 0, Espina 0, Fjellvang 0.
Quarterscores: 18-17, 40-38, 64-49, 83-69
