Grandfather of NU Omar John. –UAAP PHOTO
National University (NU) pinned an amazing loss to the University of the Philippines (UP) last season.
The Bulldogs proved it wasn’t just a fluke on Wednesday.
The University of the East (UE) is supposed to be a coffee getaway to help La Salle wash away the quick victory, which has come to a halt against the recent Ateneo powerhouse.
Not too fast.
The Bulldogs made their first mark on the Fighting Maroons record with a spirited 80-75 victory in the UAAP Season 85 men’s basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena.
That prompted the Red Warriors, who were even more impressive in yanking the Green Archers to the ground with a stunning 81-74 score.
“When NU won against UP in the first game, the players were inspired by discomfort,” said UE coach Jack Santiago, who just a few days ago celebrated as if “we were all.” I won the championship” as the Warriors finished their 15-game losing streak.
UE was eight points ahead as Kyle Paranada played on nasty inspiration and scored eight points in a row to end the game at 67, leaving 4:17.
The Warriors turned that solo scoring pace into a 22-5 matchup that Paranada overcame with a one-on-one match making it 81-72, 34.9 seconds to play.
Paranada finished with 20 points while brother Nick added 18 points as UE survived with a result of 26 points by La Salle hotshot Schonny Winston
‘Dream about this’
Meanwhile, more than giving the defending champions a stinging reality check, the hungry Bulldogs have proved something to themselves.
“We dreamed of this, to gain the respect of the other teams,” said player Steve Nash Enriquez, who returned to action after missing NU’s first three missions due to injury and Free throws freeze the match.
It was Omar John, however, who robbed UP of hopes of a powerful finish when he drilled one three times to seal the result.
“I told my team that if they wanted to be one of the big boys, they needed to take the challenge and prove it,” said NU coach Jeff Napa. “Now that we have found our identity as a team, the next challenge is how to be consistent and it will all boil down to their desire to win. ”
In another game, Ateneo needed just one dash out of the gate in the second half to beat the University of the Santo Tomas, 79-52, in the other game.
Forthsky Padrigao leads Ateneo by 20 points. INQ
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