The recent schedule of the UST Growling Tigers was far from ideal, but they made the most of their situation and rose to the challenge.

After finishing the first round of UAAP Season 87 in fourth place with a 4-3 win-loss record, UST was rewarded with back-to-back matchups against the league’s top two teams, the DLSU Green Archers and UP Fighting Maroons, within a span of four days.

No one expected the Growling Tigers to win either game–and they didn’t–but their valiant efforts in both contests bode well for their rest-of-the-season outlook. UST is now heading into the lightest stretch of their season, with four of their next five games against teams currently below them in the standings. 

The Growling Tigers will face the ADMU Blue Eagles, FEU Tamaraws, NU Bulldogs, UE Red Warriors, and Adamson Soaring Falcons in that order, with their clash against UE likely to be a pivotal one in the race for the third seed.

Although UST fell to both DLSU and UP, they showcased enough in these two defeats, especially the one against La Salle, that they could be considered moral victories. They entered the fourth quarter against the Fighting Maroons with a three-point lead but ultimately fell by 10, 83-73, as their lack of depth allowed fatigue to take its toll on them down the stretch.

In their next game against the Green Archers, the Growling Tigers flipped the script and were the team on the hunt in the fourth quarter. They threw several types of zone defenses and full court traps at La Salle which led to six steals in the final period alone.

UST trailed by as much as 20 points in the second quarter, but gradually clawed back into the game and even had a chance to win it in the final minute. With the Growling Tigers trailing by a point, Forthsky Padrigao was awarded two free throws following a mental lapse from DLSU’s Mike Phillips who committed an unsportsmanlike foul with 23 seconds left to play. 

Unfortunately for UST, Padrigao made only his first free throw, but they still maintained possession of the ball owing to the nature of Phillips’ foul. He had an opportunity to redeem himself, yet fell short, missing two three-pointers before the regulation buzzer that could have clinched the win. La Salle then went on to blitz the Growling Tigers in overtime to take a seven-point win.

What’s particularly encouraging for UST is that they managed to stay close in these two games despite subpar performances from their star point guard and Mythical Five candidate Padrigao. Across both losses, he shot a combined seven-of-25 from the field and handed out only eight assists. He should be better in their succeeding games and the Growling Tigers’ head coach Pido Jarencio should be able to figure out a game plan to free him up if they wind up facing DLSU or UP again in the Final Four.

With Padrigao struggling, Nic Cabanero and Foreign Student Athlete Mo Tounkara stepped up, showing that they can hold their own with the UAAP’s best. Cabanero averaged 20 points on 62.9% field goal shooting and 10.5 rebounds across their two losses where he was aggressive in looking for his shot from the moment that he left the bench. 

Meanwhile, Tounkara was particularly brilliant in their loss to the Fighting Maroons putting up 24 points, nine rebounds, and an assist. He was on the way to another strong performance versus the Green Archers with 14 points and eight rebounds until he was ejected with 3:36 left in the fourth quarter after receiving his second technical foul of the evening for taunting Phillips.

Christian Manaytay, Miguel Pangilinan, and Kyle Paranada all had their fair share of moments too as they have played a key role in UST’s lethal combination of a spread offense on one end and pesky defensive traps on the other.

While the Growling Tigers’ 4-5 record may appear disappointing at first glance, considering that four of those losses came against DLSU and UP puts things in perspective. It’s not far-fetched to envision a scenario where they could sweep the remainder of their second-round schedule and enter the Final Four with a 9-5 record. The team has begun to gel, and the lessons learned from this challenging back-to-back stretch are going to be invaluable.

The versatility of Cabanero and Tounkara makes them a tough match-up for any team, especially when at least one of them is hitting his shots. If they can only get more consistency out of Padrigao and the rest of their guards, they just might be able to pull off an upset come the Final Four. 

The UAAP is all about peaking at the right time, and while it’s still early in the second round, the Growling Tigers appear to be on track to hit their stride during the home stretch. With the way that they have been playing, UST may very well become the team that no one wants to face when the Final Four rolls in next month.