By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter

THE Far Eastern University Tamaraws began the second round of University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 82 on a winning note, outlasting the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons, 82-79, in overtime on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Had control of the game for much of the time, the Tamaraws (4-4) had to dig deep in the end and survive the ferocious fight back by the Maroons (5-3), who dropped back-to-back games with the loss.

Earlier in the day, the De La Salle Green Archers (4-4) improved to a .500 mark in the ongoing season with an 85-61 rout of the National University Bulldogs (1-7).

Showing better ball movement and steady defense, the Tamaraws got traction in the early goings of the first quarter, building an 18-5 lead over the Maroons by the four-minute mark.

UP though would finish the period strong with Kobe Paras at the forefront.

When the quarter smoke cleared, the Maroons were just down by a point, 18-17.

UP build on its run in the first canto to begin the second quarter, going on a 4-0 run in the opening moments to go on top, 21-18.

But Ino Comboy and Ken Tuffin helped FEU regain its footing, producing buckets to push their team ahead, 26-23, by the halfway point.

The Tamaraws stayed the course for the rest of quarter despite the UP challenge and were on top, 30-27, at the halftime break.

In the third quarter, UP attempted to regain some ground early but LJ Gonzales and the Tamaraws kept the impact of the Maroons’ charge back to a minimum.

FEU was still on top, 44-34, with five minutes to go.

The Tamaraws sustained the pile-on for the remainder of the frame on their way to a greater separation of 60-43 heading into final quarter.

Sensing that the game was slipping from their hands, UP came out with a sense of urgency to begin the fourth.

Ricci Rivero, Noah Webb and Bright Akhuetie pushed the Maroons to within 10 points, 62-52, with 8:28 still to go.

FEU though weathered the storm, creating more breathing space, 67-52, after a minute.

It maintained a safe distance of 69-54 with five minutes left in the game.

UP, however, made another rally to tie the score at 69-all with 24 ticks to go.

The Tamaraws sued for time after to set up a play to win.

FEU milked the clock all the way to the end but Comboy’s heave from beyond the arc failed to hit the mark, sending the game to overdrive.

The Tamaraws got it going first in overtime, going on a 8-3 run in the first three minutes to build a 77-72 lead.

UP then tied the score at 77-all with 1:05 before FEU went on a 5-2 run to take an 82-79 lead with 18 seconds left.

The Maroons called timeout after.

They went for a triple to try and level the score but Javi Gomez De Liano’s attempt did not go in, handing the win to the Tamaraws.

Tuffin top-scored for FEU with 18 points with Gonzales adding 17 and Pat Tchuente 11 points.

UP, meanwhile, was paced by Paras with 22 markers and Akhuetie following up with 14.

“It was a hard-earned win for us. It’s what we expected. We just focused on what was in front of us and what we had to do. We started well but did not end well in regulation. Good thing we were able to recover in overtime,” said FEU coach Olsen Racela after their win.

LA SALLE NOTCHES FOURTH WIN
Meanwhile in the first game, La Salle collared its fourth win in eight matches in Season 82 with a domination of NU.

Justine Baltazar led the Archers with 25 points and 25 rebounds followed by Andrei Caracut with 16 points.

Jamie Malonzo was the other La Salle player in double digits with 12 markers before fouling out.

For NU it was the Ildefonso brothers, Dave and Shaun, who showed the way with 11 and 10 points, respectively.

The loss was the second in a row for the Bulldogs.

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