By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons weathered the storm and held their ground against the Far Eastern University (FEU) Tamaraws, 73-67, to extend their undefeated winning streak to three in the ongoing UAAP Season 85 men’s basketball tournament.
It was another signature UP start as the wards of coach Goldwyn Monteverde put up a balanced display of fluid offense and patient defense.
The Fighting Maroons’ tremendous defensive plays held the Tamaraws to only two points after five minutes in the first quarter and were bound for another dominant finish.
However, the Tamaraws refused to melt early in the game and countered with their own 26-14 offensive run that equalized the ball game at 28-all in the second frame.
Ace Sandagon was a man on a mission for the Tamaraws and kicked off their comeback in the second quarter after scoring on consecutive baskets that sucked the life out of UP.
FEU’s resiliency turned the match into a dogfight and went toe-to-toe against the defending champions for another two quarters.
The duo of Ljay Gonzales and Patrick Sleat figured in a shooting back-and-forth with UP’s Terrence Fortea and Carl Tamayo that brought the house down in the final canto.
With 2:53 remaining in the game and UP only hanging to a two-point 66-64 lead, coach Monteverde immediately went to Tamayo who did wonders for them in the clutch against DLSU and Adamson.
Tamayo scored back-to-back buckets to extend UP’s lead to five points, 70-65, built from an isolation perimeter jump shot and a power move in the right baseline.
Gonzales kept the Tamaraws’ fighting spirit up after converting on a back door layup with 50 seconds left that trimmed UP’s lead to just three points, 70-67.
However, the Tamaraws failed to score more points in the final 50 seconds of the game and dropped their third consecutive game of Season 85.
The sweet-shooting Fortea led the Fighting Maroons with 17 big points backstopped by Tamayo’s 16 and Malick Diouf’s 11 points.
