UP's Lopez works the crowd with in-game antics

MANILA, Philippines -- "Just keeping the energy high.”

With the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons fighting off a furious comeback attempt by the Ateneo Blue Eagles in their UAAP Season 87 opening showdown on Saturday, Francis Lopez brought the boom and punched in clutch shots, including two dunks.

In the process, the emphatic forward also made gestures toward the crowd as he put in the finishing touches on the 77-61 win of UP over their Katipunan rivals.

The Fighting Maroons held an 18-point lead in the third quarter, but they saw their advantage fall to as low as eight points.

And in the fourth quarter, the Diliman-based squad was leading by 10, 64-54, at the halfway point of the frame.

JD Cagulangan stole the ball from Ateneo and found a trailing Lopez who sank an acrobatic layup, and-one, to push the lead to 13, 67-54.

He then made a “shhh” gesture to the Blue Eagle crowd.

In the next possession, Lopez went straight to the cup and slammed it home to gain a 15 point advantage, 69-54.

And with Ateneo trying to mount a comeback, 60-71, with 3:06 remaining, UP made a defensive stop and found Lopez in transition, who jammed it straight in.

He then gestured to the crowd, seemingly grabbing his crotch, as he backpedaled back in defense.

Lopez said that he just tried to hype the team up down the stretch.

“I just try to keep the energies high for us. I think I got myself going with that as well,” the forward told Philstar.com after the game.

“You know, huge help with the crowd, the UP crowd so I’m just glad that they’re there for us,” he added.

The reigning UAAP Rookie of the Year provided the spark off the bench with 14 points, six rebounds and three assists to go with two blocks.

He scored half of his points in the first half, all free throws. In the second half, he made all three of his field goals.

“Yeah, for sure [playing with the crowd boosted me]. You know, but like what Coach Gold is saying, whether we’re up or down, we just gotta keep going,” he said.

“Like I said earlier, don’t stop until the game is over. So we’re just gonna keep on pounding and pounding until everything’s over,” he added.

With this, the 21-year-old forward said he is “really glad” that the team got the win.

“I would say, I want to credit the coaches for the second half because we adjusted defensively and we got away with it. I’m just really glad that we got this win and hopefully for the upcoming games, we will also get the wins.”

The Fighting Maroons will try to keep it rolling as they face the University of the East Red Warriors on Saturday, September 4, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.