MANILA, Philippines – A promising season ended with a whimper for the University of the East (UE) Red Warriors on Wednesday, as they lost to Far Eastern University (FEU), 61-64, to conclude UAAP Season 79 with a 3-11 win-loss record.

The Red Warriors, despite not having a foreign student-athlete on their roster, were almost universally regarded as a potential Final 4 contender ahead of Season 79, thanks in part to some strong showings in the preseason.

But they opened the UAAP tournament with six straight losses, struggling mightily on both ends of the floor even though they remained adept at forcing turnovers. Players like Bonbon Batiller, Renz Palma and Paul Varilla, who were supposed to be the team's primary options, were instead woefully inconsistent.

• READ: FEU comes back vs UE to finally charge through struggles

For veteran forward RR de Leon – who underwhelmed for most of the season – their strong play in the summer partially led to their letdown in their UAAP campaign.

"Siguro, overconfident (kami)," De Leon, who averaged only 4.3 points per game this season, admitted. "Kasi, 'yun nga, sobrang ganda ng preseason namin."

"'Di namin ine-expect na pagdating dito, 'di namin maa-apply," he added.

"Siguro, dahil sa tingin namin sa sarili namin, magagaling na, kaya akala namin, parehas lang sa preseason 'yung UAAP," De Leon added. "Siguro, ayun."

Varilla, who had 13 points and five rebounds in his final game in a UE uniform, acknowledged that they "didn't live up to the hype."

Several coaches named UE as a dark horse contender, but instead the Red Warriors were among the first teams to be eliminated from the Final 4 race.

"It was a very disappointing season for us," Varilla said. "(Coach Derrick Pumaren) himself didn't expect it. He didn't expect us to be here, and so did us as a team."

The Red Warriors' Final 4 drought has now stretched to seven seasons. They last made the semifinals in 2009, when a Paul Lee-led UE team advanced to the Final 4 as the third seed and stunned second-seeded Far Eastern University to make it to the Finals.

After yet another sorry campaign in the UAAP, the Red Warriors will only take a very brief break. According to De Leon, they will return to training on Friday and join another league soon.

"Sabi ni coach, as early as after ng season, start na uli," he said. "Para mas mahaba 'yung preparation."

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