Games today:

(Smart Araneta Coliseum)

2 p.m. — UE vs UP

4:30 p.m. — Ateneo vs Adamson

National University (NU) weathered a strong second-half surge from Far Eastern University (FEU) to secure an 84-68 victory in Season 88 of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) men’s basketball tournament Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Just as NU enjoyed a comfortable 44-30 lead at halftime, the Tamaraws stormed back as Kirby Mongcopa, Mo Konateh and Neil Owens joined hands to cut the deficit to just three, 55-52, heading into the final period.

Jolo Manansala, Paul Francisco and PJ Palacielo spearheaded a blistering 14-6 run that restored a double-digit cushion, 69-58, with 5:14 left to play.

With the win, NU joined Ateneo de Manila University at the top of the standings after winning their first two games and head coach Jeff Napa had to remind his boys to stay in the fight.

“At halftime, I reminded the team that we needed to stay aggressive, but when we came out, we went flat. We lost our defensive aggression, and that’s why FEU gained momentum,” Napa said.

“So I had to reshuffle right away to find the right combination. Good thing the players I brought in stepped up.”

Omar John sizzled for NU, scoring 16 points on a 7-of-11 shooting clip while also grabbing nine rebounds, two steals, and a block as they aim to extend their winning streak to three when they face host University of Santo Tomas on Wednesday, 1 October, at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion.

Manansala contributed 13 points and nine rebounds for the Bulldogs while Jake Figueroa added 13 points, seven boards, and five assists, though he struggled from the field with a 4-of-15 shooting clip.

Rookie Mongcopa led FEU with 16 points, eight rebounds, two steals, and a block while Janrey Pasaol tallied 16 points and six assists but also committed five turnovers as they sank to a 0-2 slate along with defending champion University of the Philippines.

Meanwhile, the UAAP issued a statement regarding the reports regarding the unfair payment of the referees in the men’s and women’s division.

The country’s premier collegiate league said in a statement that the salaries of the referees are based on a merit-based system based on their performances in every match they officiate.

There was an outcry on social media in the past days as referees in the women’s division are being paid less than those working the men’s games.

But the league swears there isn’t any bias.

“Officials’ fees in the collegiate men’s, collegiate women’s, and junior high school boys’ divisions are determined by division and not by gender. They were set following a tiered, merit-based structure that allows officials — regardless of gender — to perform well in order to officiate crucial games,” the UAAP said.

“The system serves as an incentive for game officials to maintain a high performance in officiating. The technical head made recommendations on the structure, which was adopted in consultation with the referees.”

The UAAP said it vows to raise the standards of officiating to elevate the level of competition.

“We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused and reaffirm our commitment to growing the sport and working with the community to empower student-athletes, coaches, and game officials — not only in basketball but across all sports under the UAAP,” the league said.

“The UAAP remains committed to raising officiating standards through a referee development program, which aims to ensure its pool of referees meets FIBA (International Basketball Federation) standards. The adoption of the tiered system marks the initial step of the league to elevate these standards.”