UP dominates UE to extend UAAP streak to 4 straight wins

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

The University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons continued their winning ways after stomping the University of the East (UE) Red Warriors, 70–61, in the ongoing UAAP Season 88 Men’s Basketball Tournament on Nov. 8, 2025, at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion.

With another convincing win, UP became the hottest team in the UAAP, racking up its fourth consecutive dub to claim solo second place in the standings with an 8–3 win-loss record.

The final score may look close on paper, but the Fighting Maroons romped UE from start to finish, building their largest lead to as much as 26 points midway through the third quarter.

UE trimmed its deficit to nine after converting consecutive garbage points in the final 1:30 of regulation, which didn’t matter as UP only had to dribble out several possessions and wait for the final buzzer.

This time, it was UP’s frontcourt rotation that did damage against the Red Warriors, while their talented guard pool took a backseat and fed them with a series of high-low post plays.

The duo of Francis Nnoruka and Sean Alter added to UE’s woes as the 1-2 punch just couldn’t be stopped in the shaded lane, feasting their way inside while piling up UP’s second-chance points due to their offensive rebounding.

It was a much-needed rest for superstar shooting guard Harold Alarcon, who carried the offensive load for the Fighting Maroons during their last three wins.

Alter kicked off UP’s paint domination midway through the first, while Nnoruka’s aggressive drives downhill steered the Fighting Maroons to a 19–8 lead heading to the second frame.

All hell broke loose when UP capitalized on UE’s turnovers as they scored several freebie points from the fast break to build a commanding 19-point advantage at the half.

From there, the Red Warriors never recovered and could only watch the rolling UP score 13 consecutive points to open the third, en route to a comfortable 59–33 lead.

Nnoruka capped off UP’s fourth straight win with an all-around performance of 16 points, 12 rebounds, four blocks, four assists, and a steal.

Meanwhile, Alter played his best game of the season so far for the Fighting Maroons and backstopped Nnoruka with 13 markers built from a perfect 6-of-6 shooting clip alongside six boards and two blocks.

Despite sitting in second place, UP said they still can’t be complacent with three more scheduled games left before the second round of the elimination phase concludes.

The Fighting Maroons will still play against Ateneo, De La Salle University, and Adamson — games they need to win if they want to have a shot at overtaking the league-leading National University Bulldogs.