By NIKOLE JAVIER
It looks like Carl Tamayo has successfully dished out one more assist to University of the Philippines before leaving the team.
Francis Lopez has decided to transfer from Ateneo to UP with some convincing from Tamayo.
The 19-year-old shooting guard, who has been training with the Blue Eagles since last year, will now be taking his young talent to Diliman.
“Last month, he texted me on Viber saying “dito ka na sa UP”. Then you know, I just decided that I wanna go to UP. Here I am now. UP now. And then, I heard about him going to Japan, , “wala na, iniwan mo na ako eh,” said Lopez in a video posted by NowheretogobutUP, confirming his transfer.
The 6-foot-6 winger has appeared in six FIBA-sanctioned games for Gilas Pilipinas and was part of the crew that won silver in the Southeast Asian Games in Vietnam.
After its historic championship run in Season 85, UP couldn’t duplicate the same success it had in the following season and yielded to Ateneo before the year ended, losing its chance for a back-to-back championship title.
Aside from Tamayo’s departure to go pro, the two-and-through Zavier Lucero has also graduated.
With the development, the Fighting Maroons are looking to redeem their short-lived glory in the upcoming season with a promising roster in time as they regain the services of CJ Cansino who opted out of the previous season due to injury.