MANILA, Philippines — University of the Philippines took control early then cruised to an 83-70 victory over Emilio Aguinaldo College yesterday to bolster its playoff bid in the Filoil Flying V Preseason Cup at the Filoil Flying V Center in San Juan.
The Maroons unleashed a strong start and padded their 19-8 lead after 10 minutes to a whopping 44-21 bulge at the turn then coasted in the second half to improve to 4-3 in Group A play.
Javi Gomez de Liano fired 21 points while Paul Desiderio added 16 markers and Jun Manzo and Will Gozum chipped in 12 points apiece for the Diliman-based squad.
Paul Maguliano put in a double-double game of 15 points and 10 rebounds while Rustan Bugarin had 12 markers and six boards for the Generals, who fell to 0-5.
Meanwhile, UP coach Bo Perasol confirmed the transfer of La Salle center John Winifred Gob to the Maroons. Gob will take a one-year residency period and will be eligible to play in the 2019-20 UAAP season.
In the other match, Adamson also leaned on a strong start then bounced back from an erratic second quarter play with a big run in the third before holding sway for a 74-67 victory over Jose Rizal U.