FEU-Diliman dominates in NBA Rising Stars Invitationals debut

JB Cagurungan handles the ball during a game against home bet Hwa Chong Institution in the NBA Rising Stars Invitationals at the OCBC Arena in Singapore.–CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

SINGAPORE—FEU-Diliman barely broke a sweat to open its campaign in the 2026 NBA Rising Stars Invitational on Tuesday night at OCBC Arena here.

The Baby Tamaraws had a rousing debut, making easy work of home bet Hwa Chong Institution, 89-24, in Group D.

In the forefront of FEU-Diliman’s domination were Gilas Pilipinas Youth members JB Cagurungan and Prince Cariño.

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It was as if both weren’t coming off a strenuous run in the recently-concluded Fiba U18 Asia Cup Seaba Qualifiers, where they won gold.

Cagurungan and Cariño spearheaded FEU’s statement win with 22 and 21 points, respectively.

Despite the lopsided victory, coach Allan Albano knows his squad still has a lot of room for improvement.

“I keep telling them to execute their defense and stay disciplined because sometimes, with that big of a lead, guys play on their own,” Albano said.

“In our next game, I hope we do things better. We executed well earlier, but I’m still hoping for better in the next one.”

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The Baby Tamaraws ended the first period with a 33-10 lead over Hwa Chong and never looked back.

Jay Dagcutan and Dwyne Enriquez also hit double-digit scoring for FEU with 11 and 10 points to their names.

Zavier Loong was the sole double-digit scorer for Singapore with 14 points.

FEU takes on Japan’s Tottori Johoku on Thursday.