‘Fight Brothers’ Manuel and Desiderio lead Maroons to their first win

Bringing out the fight in them and in the team, relentless tandem Jett Manuel and Paul Desiderio willed their victory over the UE Red Warriors in last Wednesday’s game, ending it 75-71 and earning them their first win this season.

The game could have easily gone either way, with multiple double-digit attack runs for both teams; UE came out blazing with an early 19-8 run, but was met with UP’s vengeance in the form of a 21-0 run in the second quarter. Before closing the first half, UE levelled the competition with an 18-5 sequence.

With both teams hungry for their first win, the second half suddenly became an unforgiving match. No team dominated until the last quarter, until Jett Manuel scored a contested jumper, giving them a slight 71-69 advantage with just a minute left in the game.

Paul Desiderio was the player of the game with 17 pts, 10 rebounds, and 2 steals. Jett Manuel matched Desiderio and added 17 pts, with two of them being clutch free throws shot with just 25 seconds left in the game. Dave Moralde contributed 13 pts.

Mark Olayon of the Red Warriors led his team with 15 pts, 6 rebounds, and 1 steal. Edson Battiler contributed 14 pts, 8 rebounds, and a monster block during the last few minutes in the 4th.