HoopWatch

The University of Sto. Thomas Growling Tigers survived a comeback surge from the Far Eastern University Tamaraws late in the fourth, to hack out an emphatic 80-69 win at the Araneta Coliseum. The UST win boosted hopes that they may defend their title against automatic finalists, the UE Red Warriors, a team that swept the eliminations.

Japs Cuan had an all-around performance for the Tigers scoring eight points, dishing out nine assists and grabbing eight rebounds. They were up by as much as 23 points in the middle of the third. FEU had a 13-0 nothing run, cutting the lead down to ten, 66-76, with less than four minutes remaining. But a Jun Cortez jumper and botched attempts by the Tamaraws halted the FEU run.

The Tigers will now await the loser of the Ateneo Blue Eagles-La Salle Green Archers game set at 3 p.m. tomorrow.