The UST Growling Tigers vanished into oblivion after the pandemic basketball camp scandal that led to the departures of CJ Cansino to the UP Fighting Maroons, Brent Paraiso and Renz Abando to the Letran Knights, and Mark Nonoy to the DLSU Green Archers. Things are looking brighter though in Espana as the San Miguel Group will boost the men's basketball team of UST.
San Miguel brought Pido Jarencio to replace Bal David who failed to break UST's lackluster finishes in the recent seasons. The Growling Tigers' main gunner Nic Cabanero will return, so are Christian Manaytay, Paul Manalang, Kenji Duremdes and FSA Adama Faye.
UST will also parade its bluechip recruits during the offseason including SJ Moore from Arellano High School and Mark Llemit from UST's high school program. Will San Miguel's entry to the UST basketball program bear fruit this season? You can also check out the lineup of other teams here.
UST GROWLING TIGERS LINEUP
2023 UAAP SEASON 86 MEN'S BASKETBALL
| Pos | Player | Height |
|---|---|---|
| F | Christian Manaytay | 6'4 |
| G | Ivan Lazarte | 6'2 |
| C | Echo Laure | 6'5 |
| G | Miguel Pangilinan | 6'0 |
| G | Paul Manalang | 5'9 |
| G | Nic Cabañero | 6'2 |
| G | Kyle Magdangal | 6'2 |
| G | Kenji Duremdes | 6'2 |
| F | Vincent Ventulan | 6'4 |
| C | Thirdy Esmeña | 6'5 |
| G | SJ Moore | 6'2 |
| F | Mark Llemit | 6'3 |
| C | Adama Faye | 6'8 |
| G | Ivanne Calum | 5'9 |
| G | JJ Gesalem | 6'1 |
| F | Angelo Crisostomo | 6'5 |
Head Coach: Pido Jarencio
It's a good thing that Nic Cabanero decided to stay despite persistent rumors that he was looking to transfer given a lack of help from his teammates. Help is definitely on the way as San Miguel's war chest will definitely boost the recruitment of UST.
Some of its key players last season, however, decided to transfer. Royce Mantua opted to transfer to the Adamson Soaring Falcons squad.
| UST GROWLING TIGERS MEN'S BASKETBALL 2022 UAAP SEASON 85 LINEUP |
|---|
| Richi Calimag Jamba Garing Kenji Duremdes Soy Escobido Adama Faye Echo Laure Kylle Magdangal Royce Mantua Jonathan Gesalem Miguel Pangilinan Ivan Lazarte Paul Manalang Kendall Valentin Christian Manaytay Nic Cabanero Ian Herrera Ivanne Calum Trevor Valera Coach: Bal David |