MANILA, Philippines — Winning the championship remains the top priority for Santo Tomas forward Soulemane Chabi Yo and freshman Mark Nonoy even after bagging the top individual honors in the 82nd UAAP men’s basketball tournament.
The Beninese forward Chabi Yo (averaging 16.9 points, 14.7 rebounds) hoisted the MVP plum while the Negros Occidental native Nonoy (10.0 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists) copped the Rookie of the Year citation.
But they reiterated that these individual awards would hold no weight if the Tigers fall short in completing their mission to win the crown.
Chabi Yo showed his tremendous desire to win as he led the fourth-ranked Tigers to an 81-71 win over No. 3 FEU Tamaraws in the initial stage of the stepladder semifinals Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
“It’s okay, it’s good but what’s more important is the championship so we all have to give our best,” said Chabi Yo who torched the Tamaraws with 25 points, 11 rebounds and three assists.
Nonoy also proved to be instrumental in Santo Tomas’ massive win, accounting for six points, four rebounds, seven assists and a steal as he held his own against FEU gunner Wendell Comboy.
“I honestly did not think of winning this award but it’s an honor for the UST community. However, the bigger award remains the same and that is to win the championship,” said Nonoy.
These superb performances of his wards definitely thrilled coach Aldin Ayo, who warned his troops, though, of an even tougher task ahead as they try to continue to scale the Final Four stepladder with an end goal of ending a four-year title drought.