5 takeaways from from Wednesday's UAAP action

MANILA, Philippines — The third playing day of UAAP Season 81 saw even more fireworks. The University of Santo Tomas bagged their first win; a 76-74 upset of Far Eastern University.

UST is for real in case you weren’t paying attention, and Ateneo sent the University of the Philippines back down to earth with an 87-79 triumph.

Here are five things we can infer from these two games.

UST is for real in case you haven’t paid attention

If you read our preview on the Growling Tigers, we stated that this team will be tough to beat. If people’s memories are of how they performed during the Filoil Flying V Preseason Cup, then that is an ill-informed judgement.

Two years ago, Ateneo didn’t do great (win-loss wise) in the same league, and for the casual observer, they didn’t rate much. But if you did watch them intently as well as in their tune-up games right before tip-off, they were damn good. It is the same for UST.

No, this isn’t "Mayhem: because what made that work in La Salle was Ben Mbala. And "Mayhem" was on the defensive end. The mayhem UST causes is on offense.

And let me just point out that if Renzo Subido wasn’t so "gigil" against National University (in the first three quarters), the outcome might have been different.

Case in point: Tigers forward Zach Huang drills a long shot, close to 3-point range over FEU’s Arvin Tolentino. If you were at the game, you would have seen Arvin mouth, “wow” after the shot. I guess our friend from FEU wasn’t also paying attention because Huang does take those long shots; treys even. In fact, he shot 25 percent from that range.

But what I liked most about UST was the blistering pace they played (just like Aldin Ayo’s old Letran team). FEU couldn’t handle that.

How about UST’s super rookies?

In the first game, CJ Cansino was their big gun. This time around, while it was a team effort toward the end (the veterans), Joshua Marcos changed the complexion of UST’s game.

The rook out of LSGH attacked the interior and hit some big outside shots to open up the game for UST. Josh finished with 12 points, 3 rebounds (two on the offensive end), 2 assists, 1 steal and 1 block.

That should serve him well in his collegiate career.

FEU wasted a superb game by Prince Orizu

The graduating big man topscored with 25 points, 15 rebounds, 3 blocks and 1 steal. His missed free throws in the fourth quarter hurt though.

But nevertheless, what a waste because so many key players struggled – Tolentino, Barkley Eboña, Jasper Parker, Ken Tuffin and Alec Stockton.

Now what FEU needs to work on is getting all of those key players to play well – at the same time. Because the aforementioned Tamaraws played well in their first game (a win over La Salle) but Orizu was invisible.

Juan Gomez De Liaño’s breakout

Another guy we pointed out in our preseason preview. This kid is going to be an awesome player. He found ways to score even in the tightest of situations. Juan scored 29 points, grabbed 6 boards, and dished off 2 assists in close to 36 minutes of play. That means every minute he was on the floor, he did something. Talk about an impact player.

There is a reason why Juan is with the national team. No hype. Pure talent.

The real Blue Eagles showed up

Adamson, you bet Ateneo can’t wait for the rematch in the second round. The real them came out. But after a nervy few minutes, when Angelo Kouame began snarling, beating his chest, rebounding and blocking shots, the Blue Eagle shed that mantle of doubt and held off UP. Ateneo didn’t resort to the outside shot but instead rammed the ball down the Fighting Maroons’ collective throats.

The defending champs showed their mettle to ease the pressure ever so slightly and take a huge win leaving Adamson as the sole unbeaten team (that is because as of this writing, they have played only one game).