University of Santo Tomas (UST) head coach Pido Jarencio was all smiles after the Growling Tigers finally ended a five-year Final Four drought.

It wasn’t easy, especially with UST’s struggles in the second round of University Athletics Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 87 men’s basketball tournament.

But Jarencio, who is in his second year back as Tigers mentor, got the job done by blowing out Adamson University, 75-49, Saturday at the FilOil EcoOil Centre in San Juan to lock the No. 3 seed in the next round.

“We struggled in the second round. Lost a lot of games,” Jarencio said.

After a promising first round, UST lost four of its first five second round matches including three straight to open the crucial half of the eliminations that put its semis hopes in peril.

Fortunately, Jarencio’s ward got their acts together just in time, racking up back-to-back wins to close the elimination round with an even 7-7 win-loss record.

“Akala ko made in Taiwan lang ang players. E nagpapanalo na kami. Ah, made in USA pala!” the architect of UST’s last championship back in 2006 quipped.

With the win, the Tigers have set up a collision course against the twice-to-beat University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons — coincidentally the same opponents they beat in two games in the stepladder semifinals back in 2019.

Then bannered by foreign student-athlete Soulemane Chabi Yo, CJ Cansino, Rhenz Abando, Mark Nonoy and Renzo Subido, UST eliminated the Bright Akhuetie, Kobe Paras, Ricci Rivero and brothers Juan and Javi Gomez de Liaño-led UP to set up a finals return only to get swept by powerhouse Ateneo de Manila University.

Jarencio, who steered UST to a semis stint in 2013 before leaving the team for a coaching job with GlobalPort in the Philippine Basketball Association the following year, looks at that magical run as inspiration.

He wants his team headed by the lethal trio of Mo Tounkara, Nic Cabanero and Forthsky Padrigao to write its own version of that UST Cinderella run.

“That was 2019. That was the Renzo Subido three-point shot, winning shot (in Game 2). Let’s make a new story. We’ll write our own story. Let’s see,” Jarencio said.

Beating the Fighting Maroons that swept them in their elims head-to-head will be easier said than done for the Tigers.

But Jarencio is unfazed.

“They have a twice-to-beat. But who knows, bilog ang bola, may tsamba,” he said.

“We’ll just stay grounded. Let’s see where it goes. We’ll work for it.”