MANILA, Philippines – A rejuvenated University of the East (UE) Warriors pulled off a shocking 62-60 upset over defending champion Ateneo Blue Eagles in their UAAP men’s basketball match at the Araneta Coliseum on Thursday.

James Martinez was chosen player of the game with 22 points on 6-of-10 three-point shooting, but it was Paul Lee who secured UE’s victory with defensive gems in the dying seconds of the game.

The Warriors had ball possession with a 1-point lead, 61-60, in the last 42.4 seconds when Lee flubbed a shot to the basket.

The Blue Eagles scrambled for a final attempt to snatch the game. The ball eventually made its way to Kirk Long who drove to the middle and fired a shot in front of Lee’s defense with 7 ticks left.

The shot missed.

Ateneo’s Frank Golla immediately grabbed the ball, but Lee quickly stripped it from his hands in the final 2 seconds.

Lee was eventually fouled by Justin Chua with 0.4 of a second left.

He split his charities to bring the final scores to 62-60. UE thus secured its fourth win in 11 games.

The win was a vindication for the Warriors who were defeated by the Blue Eagles in the 72nd UAAP basketball finals.

It also showed that UE is on a warpath after its lethargic first-round performance this season.

Fuelled by their 71-63 upset win over third seeded Adamson Falcons over the weekend, the revitalized Warriors held the Blue Eagles to just 8 points in the first quarter, 10-8.

Ateneo recovered in the second quarter but was only able to tie the defensive-minded UE at the half, 27-all.

The Eagles had a good third quarter with 18 points versus the Warriors’ 11. Third quarter scores were 45-38 in favor of Ateneo.

UE then engaged Ateneo in a 12-5 run midway through the fourth quarter for a 50-all deadlock.

It was at this point when UE’s Martinez traded three pointers with Ateneo’s Eric Salamat. Martinez came through to push the scores to 61-59.

Salamat’s free-throw shot brought the scores to 61-60, leading to the mad scramble at the end game.

It was Ateneo’s third loss against 8 wins this season, putting them in a two-way tie with the Adamson Falcons (8-3) at second place.