2007 UST Growling Tigers men's basketball team

The 2007 UST Growling Tigers men's basketball team represented University of Santo Tomas in the 70th season of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines. The men's basketball tournament for the school year 2007-08 began on July 7, 2007 and the host school for the season was also UST.[1]

2007 UST Growling Tigers men's basketball
Record
Elims rank #T-4
Final rank#4
2007 record9–7 (8–6 elims)
Head coachAlfredo M. Jarencio (2nd season)
Assistant coachesSenen Z. Dueñas
Rhuel S. Acot
Julian Rabbi M. Tomacruz
CaptainAnthony Espiritu (5th season)

The Tigers, the Season 69 champions, ended the double-round eliminations in joint fourth place with the FEU Tamaraws with eight wins and six losses.[2] They then won over FEU in the playoff for the fourth and final semifinal slot. UST held the Tamaraws to a season-low of 6 points in the second quarter.[3] They were eliminated by the Ateneo Blue Eagles in a knockout game of the first round of the stepladder semifinals for the right to face the second-seeded De La Salle Green Archers in the second round.[4]

UST suffered back-to-back losses at the start of the season but recovered by winning four of their next five games to finish the first round at third place with a 4–3 record.[5]

Two of their games went into overtime. The first was an 86–90 first round loss to La Salle who had rejoined the league after serving a one-year suspension in Season 69 for fielding ineligible players in the past three years.[6] Their other overtime game was also against La Salle who they got back at in the second round with an 81–73 win. They have defeated the Green Archers for the first time since the 1999 finals where the Tigers lost in a three-game series with Game One also going into overtime.[7]

Jervy Cruz was named Most valuable player of the season.[8] He topped the statistical points tally with 75.9 at the end of the second round of eliminations on top of 11 double-doubles that included two playoff games.[9] The last UST player to win the MVP was Chris Cantonjos in Season 58. Cruz was third in the league in scoring with an average of 16.7 points per game behind the 21.3 average of Adamson's Patrick Cabahug and the 17.6 points per game of NU Bulldogs' Edwin Asoro. He led the league in rebounds with a 15.4 per game average.

Francis Allera was chosen Player of the Week by the UAAP Press Corps for the duration of July 19–22,[10] while Khasim Mirza received the citation twice on the week of August 2–5[11] and August 23–26.[12]

Roster
UST Growling Tigers roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos. No. Nat. Name Height Year High School
SG 5 Badua, John Hector M. 5'11" (1.8m) 1st University of Santo Tomas
SF 6 Ababou, Dylan Simon R. 6'3" (1.91m) 3rd Siena College of Quezon City
PF 7 Canlas, Mark Angelo C. 6'5" (1.96m) 3rd Don Bosco Academy, Pampanga
SG 8 Espiritu, Anrhony C. (C) 6'4" (1.93m) 5th University of Santo Tomas
PF 9 Gile, Melchor C. 6'4" (1.93m) 3rd –
PF 10 Dizon, June Y. 6'4" (1.93m) 5th San Sebastian College-Recoletos
SG 11 Basa, John Darryl A. 6'1" (1.85m) 1st University of Santo Tomas
PG 12 Cortez, Jose, Jr. P. 5'10" (1.78m) 5th University of Santo Tomas
SF 14 Mirza, Khasim Ali G. 6'4" (1.93m) 3rd La Salle College Antipolo
SG 16 Allera, Franciz Philip A. 6'3" (1.91m) 4th Dole Philippines School
C 17 Taylor, Chester Lloyd C. 6'4" (1.93m) 4th Colegio San Agustin
PG 18 Cuan, John Paul S. 5'7" (1.7m) 4th University of Santo Tomas
C 19 Soriano, Francis A. 6'6" (1.98m) 4th –
C 20 Cruz, Jervy A. 6'4" (1.93m) 4th Our Lady of the Sacred Heart College
PG 21 Scott, Rum Perry I. 5'9" (1.75m) 5th St. Joseph School
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
  • Rhuel S. Acot
  • Senen Z. Dueñas
  • Julian Rabbi M. Tomacruz
  • Rodil S. Sablan
Strength & conditioning coach(es)
  • Emmanuel Calipes
  • Edwin A. Escobar
  • Arlene Chua-Chiong Maya
Team manager
  • Clarence D. Aytona
  • Timmy Chong
  • Rudy Yu
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • Injured

Depth chart
Pos. Starting 5 Bench 1 Bench 2
C Jervy Cruz Chester Taylor Kiko Soriano
PF Badong Canlas June Dizon Mel Gile
SF Dylan Ababou Francis Allera Darryl Basa
SG Khasim Mirza Anthony Espiritu Hector Badua
PG Japs Cuan Jun Cortez Rum Perry Scott

Roster changes

Subtractions
Pos.#POBPlayerHeightYearHigh schoolNotes
SG 5 Andre Charles D. Marquez 6' 3" 2nd La Salle Greenhills Relegated to Team B
SG 11 Joselito M. Duncil 6' 1" 5th Balucuc High School Left team to turn professional
SG 14 Jemal B. Vizcarra 6' 1" 5th Adamson University Graduated
PF 21 Allan E. Evangelista 6' 3" 5th San Sebastian College-Recoletos Graduated

Additions
Pos.#POBPlayerHeightYearHigh schoolNotes
SG 5 John Hector M. Badua 5' 11" 1st University of Santo Tomas Rookie
SG 11 John Darryl A. Basa 6' 1" 1st University of Santo Tomas Rookie
SF 14 Khasim Ali G. Mirza 6' 4" 3rd La Salle College Antipolo Transferred from World Citi Colleges
C 19 Francis A. Soriano 6' 6" 4th
PG 21 Rum Perry I. Scott 5' 9" 5th St. Joseph School Transferred from Lyceum of the Philippines University

Ineligibility issues

Jojo Duncil, Season 69 Finals MVP, has announced to the team of his decision to turn professional and forego his last playing year in the UAAP.[13]

It was revealed on July 2, 2007 during the press conference for the upcoming UAAP Season 70 by Institute of Physical Education and Athletics (IPEA) director Fr. Ermito de Sagon that Duncil's age eligibility was being questioned by other member schools after it was discovered that Duncil had two NSO certificates that showed varying data. One certificate had 1983 as Duncil's year of birth while another had shown that he was born in 1982.[14]

According to Fr. de Sagon of the host school for the season, the team has decided to exclude him from the roster to avoid future games being put in protest which can only cause distraction to the rest of the team. De Sagon added that Duncil, being the rector's nephew is undoubtedly only 24 years old and is eligible to play this season.[15]

Preseason tournaments

2007 Nike Summer League
  • Tournament record: 1W–5L
DateOpponentScoreVenueTop scorer
Apr 23 NU Bulldogs L 59–72 FEU Gym Basa - 16 pts
Apr 26 Ateneo de Zamboanga Eagles L 110–115OT FEU Gym Afuang - 27 pts
May 1 Mapúa Cardinals L 62–79 FEU Gym
May 3 FEU Tamaraws L 51–93 FEU Gym
May 5 UP Fighting Maroons L 70–78 FEU Gym Basa - 18 pts
May 7 Benilde Blazers W 82–79 FEU Gym

2007 Filoil Flying V Preseason Invitational Cup
  • Tournament record: 2W–5L
DateTimeOpponentScoreVenueTop scorer
May 2 6:00 pm Perpetual Altas W (forfeit) The Arena in San Juan
May 4 6:00 pm San Beda Red Lions L 82–103 The Arena in San Juan Basa - 25 pts
May 6 2:00 pm Ateneo Blue Eagles L 60–67 The Arena in San Juan Basa - 16 pts
May 23 4:00 pm UE Red Warriors L 78–98 The Arena in San Juan Afuang - 22 pts
May 25 4:00 pm UP Fighting Maroons L 69–71 The Arena in San Juan
May 27 2:00 pm FEU Tamaraws L 57–84 The Arena in San Juan Afuang - 13 pts
Jun 1 2:00 pm JRU Heavy Bombers W 96–92 The Arena in San Juan Afuang - 23 pts

UAAP Season 70 results
Further information: UAAP Season 70 basketball tournaments and UAAP Season 70 men's basketball tournament

Elimination games were played in a double round-robin format. All games were aired on Studio 23.

DateTimeOpponentVenueResultRecord
First round of eliminations
Jul 8 4:00 pm UE Red Warriors Cuneta Astrodome • Pasay L 60–73 0–1
Game Highs: Points: Cruz – 16; Rebounds: Cruz, Cuan – 9
Jul 14 4:00 pm FEU Tamaraws Ninoy Aquino Stadium • Manila L 66–81 0–2
Game Highs: Points: Cruz – 19; Rebounds: Cruz – 22; Assists: Cuan – 4
Jul 19 2:00 pm Adamson Falcons Ninoy Aquino Stadium • Manila W 96–84 1–2
Game Highs: Points: Allera – 26; Rebounds: Cruz – 23
Jul 21 4:00 pm UP Fighting Maroons Ninoy Aquino Stadium • Manila W 76–68 2–2
Game Highs: Points: Allera – 15, Ababou – 13, Espiritu – 10
Jul 26 2:00 pm NU Bulldogs Araneta Coliseum • Quezon City W 83–72 3–2
Game Highs: Points: Ababou – 18; Rebounds: Cuan – 8; Assists: Cuan – 7
Jul 29 2:00 pm De La Salle Green Archers Araneta Coliseum • Quezon City L 86–90OT 3–3
Game Highs: Points: Cruz – 22, Ababou – 14, Mirza – 12
Aug 4 4:00 pm Ateneo Blue Eagles Cuneta Astrodome • Pasay W 87–74 4–3
Game Highs: Points: Mirza – 25; Rebounds: Cruz – 21
Tied for third place after 1st round (4 wins–3 losses)
Second round of eliminations
Aug 11 4:00 pm De La Salle Green Archers Araneta Coliseum • Quezon City W 81–73OT 5–3
Game Highs: Points: Cruz – 16; Rebounds: Cruz – 18
Aug 19 2:00 pm UE Red Warriors Cuneta Astrodome • Pasay L 82–99 5–4
Game Highs: Points: Mirza – 18, Cruz – 17, Espiritu – 13
Aug 26 4:00 pm NU Bulldogs Araneta Coliseum • Quezon City W 84–72 6–4
Game Highs: Points: Mirza – 19, Ababou – 16, Cruz – 12
Aug 30 4:00 pm Ateneo Blue Eagles Araneta Coliseum • Quezon City L 71–72 6–5
Game Highs: Points: Cruz – 22; Rebounds: Cruz – 18
Sep 2[lower-alpha 1] 2:00 pm UP Fighting Maroons Araneta Coliseum • Quezon City W 77–61 7–5
Game Highs: Points: Espiritu – 16; Rebounds: Cruz – 14; Assists: Cruz – 4
Sep 9 2:00 pm Adamson Falcons Araneta Coliseum • Quezon City W 74–62 8–5
Game Highs: Points: Cruz – 24; Rebounds: Cruz – 18
Sep 13 2:00 pm FEU Tamaraws Araneta Coliseum • Quezon City L 73–84 8–6
Game Highs: Points: Cruz – 13, Mirza – 12, Canlas – 10
Tied for 4th place at 8 wins–6 losses (4 wins–3 losses in the 2nd round)
Playoff for fourth seed
Sep 17 3:00 pm FEU Tamaraws Araneta Coliseum • Quezon City W 80–69 1–0
(9–6)
Game Highs: Points: Cruz – 17; Rebounds: Cruz – 14; Assists: Cuan – 8
Advanced to semifinals
First round of stepladder semifinals
Sep 23 3:00 pm Ateneo Blue Eagles Araneta Coliseum • Quezon City L 64–69 0–1
(9–7)
Game Highs: Points: Cruz – 17; Rebounds: Cruz – 16; Assists: Cuan – 5
Eliminated from the 2nd round of stepladder semifinals

Times listed above are in UTC+08:00

  1. Aug 16 R2 match vs UP moved to Sep 2 due to TS Egay

Eliminations
  • PlayerGPScoring ave.Season high
    Jervy Cruz1416.724
    Khasim Mirza1411.625
    Dylan Ababou1410.518
    Anthony Espiritu147.816
    Japs Cuan147.813
    Badong Canlas136.110
    Francis Allera146.026
    Jun Cortez143.610
  • PlayerGPScoring ave.Season high
    Chester Taylor133.59
    June Dizon142.17
    Hector Badua61.86
    Mel Gile121.66
    Rum Perry Scott71.04
    Kiko Soriano30.72
    Darryl Basa40.52
    Total1478.396
    Opponents1476.199

Playoffs

Postseason tournaments

2007 Philippine Collegiate Championship
  • Tournament rank: 4th (2W–2L)
DateTimeOpponentScoreVenueTop scorer
Round of 16
Nov 12 2:00 pm Mapúa Cardinals W 91–90 St. Placid Gym Allera - 25 pts
Elite eight
Nov 19 4:00 pm San Beda Red Lions W 88–84 The Arena in San Juan Cruz - 21 pts
Final four
Nov 26 4:00 pm Ateneo Blue Eagles L 66–92 The Arena in San Juan Ababou - 22 pts
Battle for third place
Nov 28 2:00 pm STI Olympians L 81–87OT The Arena in San Juan Cruz - 21 pts

Times listed above are in UTC+08:00

Awards
Player Award
Jervy Cruz Season MVP
Mythical team
PSBank Maaasahan Award
Japs Cuan KFC Assist Delivery Award
Francis Allera Player of the Week — July 19–22
Khasim Mirza Player of the Week — August 2–5
Player of the Week — August 23–26

References
  1. "UAAP all set to open 70th season on July 7". GMA News Online. Retrieved July 2, 2007.
  2. Cordero, Abac. "Warriors cap historic sweep over Archers". The Philippine Star. Retrieved September 14, 2007.
  3. Cordero, Abac. "Wounded Tigers stay in the hunt". The Philippine Star. Retrieved September 18, 2007.
  4. Cordero, Abac. "Eagles have landed – almost". The Philippine Star. Retrieved September 24, 2007.
  5. Cordero, Abac. "Tigers on a roll, clip Eagles' wings". The Philippine Star. Retrieved August 5, 2007.
  6. "La Salle suspended for 1 year, banned from all UAAP events". GMA News Online. Retrieved April 21, 2006.
  7. Payo, Jasmine W. "Tigers beat Archers at last". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved August 12, 2007.
  8. "UST's Jervy Cruz is UAAP Season 70 basketball MVP". GMA News Online. Retrieved October 7, 2007.
  9. Ramos, Gerry N. "Cruz has come a long way". People's Journal. Retrieved October 6, 2007.
  10. Payo, Jasmine W. "Allera puts Tigers back in the hunt". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved July 24, 2007.
  11. "UST's Mirza is UAAP Player of the Week". GMA News Online. Retrieved August 7, 2007.
  12. "UST's Mirza gets 2nd citation". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved August 29, 2007.
  13. "UST Tigers' Duncil to join PBA draft". GMA News Online. Retrieved June 29, 2007.
  14. "2 birth certificates cost MVP Duncil his UST postt". GMA News Online. Retrieved July 2, 2007.
  15. "Duncil leaves the lair… turns professional". The Varsitarian. Retrieved June 30, 2007.
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