University of the East (UE) defended its home floor, romping past the University of Santo Tomas (UST), 94-81, to bounce back in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 89 boys’ 16U basketball tournament on Friday at the Lucio K. Tan Jr. Gym.

It was a historic win for the Junior Warriors as it marked the first UAAP game held at the venue, which is named in honor of former Red Warriors head coach Bong Tan.

“This is history for our school that we played our first ever UAAP game here. We are so honored to have done it and this was such a big achievement to the kids,” said Junior Warriors head coach Paulo Hubalde, who is a former Red Warrior himself.

The gym was packed with UE students, whose energy never let up from tip-off to the final buzzer.

“I’m happy because there are so many people watching. My parents, my siblings, and my classmates are all here. There’s a big crowd, and I’m glad we were able to showcase our game to them,” said Jadan Sena, the son of former professional player James, who finished with 13 points, seven rebounds, two assists, and two steals.

Jaden Roxas provided the spark for UE early, scoring 10 of his 14 points in the first 10 minutes to give the home team a 29-20 lead.

It was all Junior Warriors from there as Sena, Xerone Dizon, and Odrie Mallabo took charge offensively while also anchoring the defense to stifle the visiting Junior Tiger Cubs.

UE’s lead ballooned to as high as 24 points, 92-68, midway through the final frame before Hubalde pulled out his starters.

“I always tell them to give their heart out when they play and to always do the right thing. Although there were a lot of canceled games, our loss to NU (National University) was a huge help. It showed us what we needed to work on, including sharpening our skillsets,” said Hubalde, referring to UE’s close 83-79 loss to defending champion NU Nazareth School last 21 August at the FEU-Diliman Gym.

Dizon finished with 12 points and nine rebounds, while Mallabo added 12 points and eight rebounds.

Andrie Ancheta, Kurt Mercado, and Jankiel Velayo also chipped in nine points each as UE improved to 2-1, while UST dropped to 1-2.

The Junior Tiger Cubs, who were coming off an 86-77 win over the UPIS Fighting Maroons, were led by Wayne Anggot, who finished with 11 points and six rebounds.