Lingolingo fuels Warriors engine

Not so many bought the idea that University of the East (UE) would give a serious run for a Final Four contention with most of the opposition making significant movements during the offseason.

However, the Red Warriors have proven that they could give any team a run for their money in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 87 men’s basketball tournament on any given Sunday.

At the center of that semifinals seat pursuit is gutsy Wello Lingolingo, whose heroics completed UE’s remarkable week and promising first round.

Lingolingo showed off not only his range but also his heart in a pair of clutch performances that clipped the wings of the reeling Ateneo de Manila University and Adamson University.

The UE mainstay saved his squad from the jaws of defeat with a buzzer-beating bucket in their first-round finale over the Falcons, just four days after a 13-point outburst in 19 minutes of play against cellar-dwelling Blue Eagles.

Lingolingo’s stellar performance earned him the nod as recipient of the Collegiate Press Corps UAAP Player of the Week award backed by the Philippine Sports Commission, with Discovery Suites and World Balance as minor sponsors for the period 2 to 6 October.

The Red Warriors standout posted impressive averages of 11.5 points on 67 percent field-goal shooting and also 67 percent from the three-point area, on top of 3.5 boards and 3.0 steals in back-to-back victories that propelled the team to solo third spot.

UE’s five straight victories after an early 0-2 hole matched the team’s longest win streak in nine years at five and set the squad’s best start in 17 years since their undefeated, Paul Lee, Marcy Arellano and Mark Borboran-led Season 70 run.

Lingolingo bested his teammate Precious Momowei, De La Salle University’s Kevin Quiambao and Joshua David, University of Santo Tomas’ Mo Tounkara and National University’s Kenshin Padrones for the weekly plum given by sports scribes from print and online publications covering the beat.

On a busy Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena, Linglingo seized his biggest moment yet as a Red Warrior after banging in the game-winning buzzer-beater off a double clutch jumper to evade the outstretched arm of Joshua Yerro for the 63-62 count.

“Coach (Jack Santiago) gave his full trust and confidence in me. He gave me confidence in what I could do for the team, so I’m thankful for that,” Lingolingo said.

Meanwhile, reigning league Most Valuable Player (MVP) Kacey dela Rosa of Ateneo copped the Player of the Week award in the women’s division.

Dela Rosa proved to be a bona fide double-double machine by dropping 19 points and 13 rebounds in a masterful 90-62 win over UE before her 21 markers and 13 boards fell ever so short in a 58-66 loss to NU.

Katipunan’s 6-foot-4 fortress, who leads the women’s basketball MVP race after Round 1, registered her sixth and seventh double-doubles of the season to keep her 4-3 Ateneo side on track for a third straight Final Four appearance.