Upending an early double-digit lead, the UST Tiger Cubs salvaged an 83-68 win over Triple Threat-New Zealand to advance to the Division 1 Sweet 16 in the NBTC National Finals on March 19 at the Mall of Asia Arena.

The Tiger Cubs started off slow, trailing 2-12 in the first three minutes of the game before a 10-2 burst pulled them back in.

UST found themselves in a double-digit hole once more in the second quarter as they faced a 22-35 disadvantage midway through the quarter.

From there, the Tiger Cubs scored 14 unanswered points to ignite a run that opened the floodgates for them in the second half.

After a nip-and-tuck third quarter, UST zoomed to a 19-8 run to open the final period, breaking away from the Filipino-Kiwi selection to move to the Round of 16.

With the win, the Tiger Cubs move to Division 1, the tournament’s winners bracket.

The Tiger Cubs had to play through the NBTC Wildcard tournament last week to advance to the National Finals.

As one of Manila’s representatives in the tournament, UST finished second in the Wildcard tilt after a grueling three-day schedule that saw them play twice in three consecutive days.

Among the teams they took down were the selections from America and Italy before securing their spot in the weeklong national tournament by beating the De La Salle-Zobel Junior Archers.

Carl Manding recorded 27 points on a perfect 10-of-10 from the field to lead the way for the Tiger Cubs, while UST’s guards JB Lim and Wacky Ludovice each had 10 markers.

Ludovice was ranked number 20 in this year’s NBTC ranking of the best high school players in the country.

Lim, meanwhile, broke out last week in the Wildcard game versus DLSZ, scoring 45 points in the semifinal win.

Next for the Tiger Cubs is the Crossover Canada.

The NBTC National Finals will continue tomorrow at the same venue, with its All-Star exhibition and National Championship game slated for the weekend.