Warriors stall Tigers; Eagles stay in race

MANILA, Philippines - Clark Derige dished out a career 26-point game as University of the East ambushed a flat University of Santo Tomas, 91-77, yesterday to stay alive in the Final Four race in the UAAP Season 78 men’s basketball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Derige hit nine points in the fourth quarter to cap his game-long brilliance and help the Warriors quash the Tigers’ major fightback for their fourth victory in 11 outings.

The loss also stalled the Tigers’ bid for the twice-to-beat edge in the semis although they remained at second behind the idle FEU Tams (10-1) with a 9-3 slate.

“We know we still have a shot at the Final Four, maybe a tie for the last slot, so we have to play with a sense of urgency. We have to come out and play UST hard,” said UE coach Derrick Pumaren, whose wards look to finish with seven wins to try to forge a playoff for the last semis berth.

Ateneo outclassed University of the Philippines, 74-65, to clinch the third semis berth with an 8-4 card, moving just one game behind second-running UST. The Maroons dropped to 3-8 and in the brink of eliminations.

Kiefer Ravena shot 16 points while rookie Adrian Wong punched in nine of his 14 markers in the payoff canto as the Eagles also boosted their bid for the twice-to-beat bonus.  

“We’re happy about this situation but it needs to be done yet. What we have right now is just a chance. We’re 1-1/2 game behind (leader FEU), Hindi madali (It won’t be easy), especially we’re facing La Salle and UE (next),” said AdMU coach Bo Perasol.

The Eagles grabbed a 45-26 upperhand after 20 minutes of play but coughed up just nine points in the third as UP came to within 10 at 44-54. But Wong made some big shots down the stretch to restore a double-digit spread for AdMU.

Throwing UST off its offensive rhythm with a punishing full-court trap, the Warriors seized a 62-49 lead in the third and enjoyed a 70-62 advantage halfway through the fourth.

But the Tigers threatened to within, 71-73, with still 2:45 left before Derige’s back-to-back triples and two-pointer ignited an 18-6 windup that sealed it for the Recto-based school.

“We’re up against a tough team and we have to fight them tooth and nail, toe to toe. That’s what we did. They (UST) made a run and cut it down but we’re able to respond well and pull the game off,” said Pumaren.