UST comes alive in 2nd half to beat UP, 73-57

MANILA, Philippines – University of Santo Tomas picked up the slack in the second half to beat University of the Philippines, 73-57, in the UAAP Season 77 men’s basketball tournament Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Returning swingman Louie Vigil fired a career-high 17 points for The Growling Tigers, who reasserted their mastery over the Fighting Maroons – beating them for the 15th straight time.

“After our game against Adamson we just focused on our shooting during practices,” said Vigil, whose 3-pointer put UST up by 18, 72-54, with 1:22 left.

“Coach also gave me the confidence and I’m also thankful for the opportunity he’s giving me,” added Vigil.

The Tigers snapped out of a funk in the first half, where they trailed by as much as 11, 36-25. Vigil put his team at the driver’s seat for the first time, 46-45, with a triple at the 6:13 mark of the third quarter since falling behind by double-digits.

“I’m not surprised with the way he (Vigil) is playing. He’s been playing well in our summer tournaments and I expected him to be one of our scorers here in the UAAP,” head coach Bong dela Cruz, who is bracing for Ateneo on Wednesday, said after his squad improved to 3-1.

Karim Abdul tallied game-highs 18 points and eight rebounds while UST skipper Aljon Mariano played his best game so far this season with 10 points, six rebounds and four assists.

Mariano keyed in the Tigers’ surge late that blew the game wide open – accounting for 12 of his team’s last 13 points – during a 20-0 run after the Maroons led by a point.

UP, which has now lost for the 26th consecutive game dating back to two seasons ago, regained the lead, 54-53, on a basket by Diego Dario with 7:41 remaining.

But that turned out to be the Maroons last points for the next seven minutes before JR Gallarza knocked in a useless trey in the waning seconds of the game.