Returning Prince Cariño immediately made up for lost time, leading Far Eastern University-Diliman (FEU-D) to a hard-fought 72–68 victory over University of the East (UE) in Season 88 University Athletic Association of the Philippines junior high school basketball tournament on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

After sitting out their loss to University of Santo Tomas last Wednesday due to illness, Cariño joined forces with Prince Pineda in the clutch to help FEU-D overcome the Junior Warriors and finish the first round tied for second place with a 5–2 win-loss record.

In the first game, University of the Philippines Integrated School snapped its 20-game losing streak with a 70–59 win over the struggling De La Salle Zobel.

Baby Tamaraws head coach Muriel Garcia said he is glad to have Cariño back as they enter the second round, which is the most crucial phase of their campaign in the preliminaries.

“I’m thankful that they have fully recovered,” Garcia said.

“Most of my players are sick and they were able to practice just recently so we had a very short preparation time against UE. For me, I’m satisfied with our win today.”

In a back-and-forth battle to open the fourth period, both teams stayed within striking distance. Mark Perdigon and Zion Aguilar then drained back-to-back triples to give UE a narrow 66–62 lead with 3:06 remaining.

Eager to regain control, FEU-D responded with a decisive 8-0 run, highlighted by a midrange jumper from Cariño and a three-pointer plus an and-one layup by Pineda to establish a four-point, 70–66 lead with 2:05 left on the clock.