Tigers rule collegiate warmup tourney

MANILA, Philippines — University of Santo Tomas completed a flawless run to the NSAC 2026 College Basketball Campus Tour crown, taking down National University, 95-84, in the championship game on Sunday at the Blue Eagle Gym in Loyola Heights, Quezon City.

UST weathered a late NU surge behind Mo Diassana’s relentless work on the glass. The Growling Tigers answered every push, with Collins Akowe scoring inside and Amiel Acido drilling a triple to keep the lead at 87-80, with 3:49 remaining.

Acido then split a pair of free throws before Mark Llemit buried a dagger three, stretching the advantage to 95-84 with 55 seconds left. From there, UST cleaned up the defensive boards and ran out the clock to secure the championship.

“‘Yung chemistry and camaraderie ng team it showed off in this championship. Actually pagod na ‘yung mga players namin pero it’s their will to win and ginawan nila ng paraan and nakakatuwa kasi it’s a good boost for us preparing for the UAAP. We’re thankful there’s a league like Asiabasket that we’re able to face ‘yung mga malalakas na opponents. Good prepapration for us,” said UST assistant coach Japs Cuan.

Finals MVP Llemit delivered a game-high 27 points and seven rebounds, and two assists, with Akowe chipping in 14 points and 11 boards.

“Sobrang malaking bagay samin (‘yung championship) kasi nagre-rebuild kami kasi maraming mga bago. And nakuha namin ‘yung parang opportunity na manalo kami ngayon. Masaya ako then ‘yung mga rookies naman namin nakakuha naman ng kumpiyansa,” said Llemit.