in the MVP race as Ateneo went on to clinch the 3rd seed. However, they lost in the first round of the playoffs to Adamson. He was awarded a spot on the UAAP Juniors Mythical Team at the end of the season, and finished with averages of 16.0 points on 45% shooting, 9.2 rebounds and 3.0 blocks. In 2020, Lopez made it to the NBTC 24, a list of the top high school basketball players in the country. He was named among the 2020 SLAM Philippines Rising Stars. Two years later, he got to play in the SLAM Rising Stars Classic. Failed stint with Overtime Elite On July 13, 2021, Lopez signed with the Overtime Elite basketball league. However, he never got to join the league, as his visa was constantly rejected by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). He only received $25,000 of his $100,000 deal but it was for the use of his image and likeness in the promotional materials of OTE. He then spent time with the Philippines' men's national team and attempted to play for the Illawarra Hawks in the NBL, but due to his Filipino-Angolan heritage, did not qualify as an Asian import. College career UP Fighting Maroons For the next phase of his basketball career, it was expected that Lopez would either play overseas or play for the Ateneo Blue Eagles. On January 21, 2023, on the night Ateneo was celebrating its Season 85 basketball championship with a bonfire, Naveen Ganglani of Rappler reported that Lopez had committed to playing for the UP Fighting Maroons. Aside from his family and friends, he also credited UP star player and Gilas teammate Carl Tamayo for helping him in his decision. His former agency also released a letter saying that since he didn't attain a US visa, his contract with them is considered void ab initio (void from start), clarifying eligibility concerns. National team career Junior national team In 2019, Lopez was named to the Gilas U-19 team for the 2019 FIBA Under-16 Asian Championship. Senior national team In 2021, Lopez made his senior national team debut against Indonesia in the third window of the 2022 Fiba Asia Cup qualifiers. He contributed eight points and five rebounds in just nine minutes as Gilas beat Indonesia. That year, he was the final cut of the team before Gilas competed in the Olympic Qualifying Tournament. In 2022, Lopez