THE UST Growling Tigers fell short of a UAAP Season 87 men’s 3×3 basketball title after a 15-12 loss to the reigning champions DLSU Green Archers on Sunday, May 4, at the Ayala Malls Manila Bay.
This was the Tigers’ first podium finish since Season 84 in 2022.
UST entered the semifinals with a 5-2 record, only trailing the top-seeded NU Bulldogs, who were eliminated by the eventual champions earlier in the day.
Rookie sharpshooter Amiel Acido paced UST with eight points and an assist in the losing effort.
UST struggled to start the game as back-to-back long bombs from Tiger Cub-turned-Archer Andrei Dungo gave DLSU a 5-0 cushion.
Acido finally put the Tigers on the board with an and-1 before the Archers widened the gap to 9-2.
The España squad retaliated with a 4-2 run fueled by buckets from Acido and fellow rookie Ice Danting, trimming the Taft squad’s lead to 11-7.
Back-to-back triples from Acido and Danting shaved their deficit to three in the dying seconds before DLSU held down defensively to secure the win.
Dungo led the Archers with 7 points and two blocks. He also earned MVP honors.
Danting added three points and two assists for UST, while big man Gelo Crisostomo had a point and two steals.
In the junior high school division, the UST Tiger Cubs also settled for silver after losing to the Ateneo Blue Eagles, 22-19. F
