NU's Jake Figueroa in action against UST in the UAAP Season 88 men's basketball tournament, October 1, 2025 at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion. UAAP Media
MANILA (UPDATED) -- Jake Figueroa took charge in crunch time to lift National University to a hard-earned 76-69 victory over University of Santo Tomas, Wednesday at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion.
It was an impressive result for the Bulldogs, who remained unbeaten in the UAAP Season 88 men's basketball tournament and joined Ateneo de Manila University at the top of the standings with identical 3-0 records.
The season's hosts, meanwhile, suffered their first loss after opening their campaign with back-to-back wins.
Figueroa was the hero for National U, as he drilled a stepback jumper with 1:52 to play to put them up 70-67. After UST's Nic Cabanero responded with a layup, Figueroa drilled the dagger three-pointer with 38.5 ticks left that put them in control, 73-69.
He scored nine of his 22 points in the final quarter while also grabbing nine rebounds.
"The players really worked hard talaga na makuha ito… Happy for our guys na talagang they followed the game plan. They are disciplined to do it, the effort is there yun naman ang laging sinasabi ko sa kanila," said NU head coach Jeff Napa.
The Bulldogs kept UST's star rookie, Collins Akowe, in check for most of the game.
The big man had been averaging 24.5 points and 18.0 rebounds in the Growling Tigers’ 2-0 start with big wins against the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons and the De La Salle University Green Archers - the last two seasons’ finalists.
Against National U, however, the former NU-Nazareth School center managed just five points on 1-of-7 shooting from the field and eight rebounds.
It was instead Figueroa who stole the show, making the biggest plays down the stretch to stun UST in its home court.
"Tinake advantage ko lang 'yung binigay na responsibilidad ni coach na 'yun nga, kumbaga kailangan kong akuin so ayun kahit papaano pumapasok naman," said Figueroa.
Gambian center Omar John also outplayed Akowe for NU, registering 10 points, 12 rebounds, three blocks, three assists, and two steals
On the other hand, UST’s dream start came to an end, dropping to 2-1, tied with La Salle at third.
Cabañero paced the Growling Tigers with 19 points on an 8-of-19 clip from the field while Amiel Acido erupted for a career-high 18 points in the defeat.
Mark Llemit also contributed 12 points, five rebounds, two steals, and a block while Forthsky Padrigao got 10 points and six assists.
Both teams will be back on Saturday with NU clashing with UP at 4:30 p.m. while UST aims to bounce back at 1:30 p.m. against winless University of the East, still at the QPav.
The Scores:
NU (76) – Figueroa 22, John 10, Palacielo 10, Garcia 9, Enriquez 7, Francisco 5, Santiago 4, Parks 3, Manansala 2, Jumamoy 2, Dela Cruz 2, Padrones 0, Solomon 0, Tulabut 0, Navarro 0.
UST (69) – Cabañero 19, Acido 18, Llemit 12, Padrigao 10, Akowe 5, Buenaflor 3, Crisostomo 2, Estacio 0, Danting 0, Paranada 0, Laure 0, Calum 0.
Quarterscores: 18-22, 40-43, 58-61, 76-69.