THE UST Growling Tigers punched their ticket to the semifinals of the 18th FilOil Preseason Cup after weathering the Emilio Aguinaldo College (EAC) Generals, 82-73, on Friday, July 11, at the Playtime FilOil Centre in San Juan.
With the victory, the Tigers entered the semifinals for the first time since 2013.
UST assistant coach Japs Cuan credited the roster’s depth and pace in the team’s success this preseason.
“That’s what we want as a team, our pace… we expect substitutions to come around three to four minutes because we want everyone to go all out immediately,” Cuan said postgame.
“We’re just happy that our players’ maturity and composure are slowly developing,” he added.
UST guard Ice Danting continued his hot shooting from last game, knocking down a corner three to kick off the match. A layup from General Jude Bagay, followed by a three from Wilmar Oftana gave EAC an early 7-3 edge.
The Tigers followed with an offensive barrage of their own, as wingers Amiel Acido and Koji Buenaflor combined for four triples to ignite a 25-14 advantage at the end of the first frame.
Midway through the second salvo, UST continued to widen its gap as senior guard Kyle Paranada cashed in another triple. EAC, however, leaned on Jearolan Omandac’s hot hand to shave their deficit to six at halftime, 46-40.
Entering the second half, General rookie EJ Castillo applied more pressure by knocking down consecutive jumpers to trim the Tiger’s lead to five, 50-45.
Co-captain Forthsky Padrigao’s three pointer was UST’s sole field goal in the final three minutes, but the Tigers still maintained a 62-50 cushion to close the third period
The Generals sparked a 10-0 rally to open the final quarter, shaving their deficit down to just two, 62-60.
Nursing a six point lead in the final minutes, the Tigers retaliated with an 8-0 blitz from Paranada and Gelo Crisostomo to secure the semifinal slot.
Crisostomo steered UST to victory with a 17-point, 13-rebound double-double, while co-captain Nic Cabañero chipped in 11 markers, 4 rebounds and an assist.
Castillo paced EAC with 14 points, while Jude Bagay and Jearolan Omandac added 13 points apiece.
The Tigers will face the NU Bulldogs for a finals berth on Sunday, July 13, at the same venue. F
