Different journeys led to the same destination for the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons, who absorbed double losses in their first Season 89 encounter with Far Eastern University (FEU) on Sunday, Oct. 4, at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig.
Following its season-opening victory under a new coach, the women’s team logged its first loss with a 1-1 slate, while the men’s team is still looking to find its groove as it fell to a 2-2 record.
Smoked ignition
Victory slipped from the hands of the UP Women’s Basketball Team (WBT) after forcing an overtime decider against the FEU Lady Tamaraws, 67-74.
State U’s momentum ignited early as Kennan Ka opened the match with a jumper from beyond the arc, sparking a 12-2 run with combined efforts from Louna Ozar, Shanina Tapawan and Tiani Abrams.
The Lady Tamaraws answered with a 7-0 run before foreign student-athlete Blessing Francis’ paintwork extended the maroon shirts’ lead to 16-9, while UP guard Kaye Pesquera knocked down a triple to close the first quarter with a 20-9 advantage.
Picking up where they left off, Francis kept the pressure on the paint with an assist to Pesquera’s triple along with a second-chance basket, 25-13.
UP’s lead stretched to 15 with combined efforts from starters Camille Nolasco and Ka, 34-19, but FEU’s Shane Salvani and Elaine Patio responded with back-to-back baskets before Pesquera completed a three-point play to keep the Fighting Maroons ahead by halftime, 39-28.
Coming into the third frame, missed baskets from the Diliman-based squad kept the Lady Tamaraws within striking distance, but Shane Cunanan’s entry off the bench did not go unnoticed as she drilled a triple to end the third quarter, 53-43.
Forced turnovers then plagued the Fighting Maroons in the final quarter, opening the opportunity for the Morayta-based squad to catch up with a 10-point run to claim its first lead of the match at 63-64 with 1:07 on the clock.
With only four seconds left, Maroon co-captain Tapawan answered the call, draining a layup to tie the match at 65 and send the match to overtime.
Unable to bounce back from the Lady Tamaraws’ late-game surge, UP scored only two points off Ka’s jumper and ended up in a completely opposite state from where they started, 67-74.
The Fighting Maroons’ inability to stay composed in crucial moments proved costly as turnovers gave the Lady Tamaraws an opportunity to turn the tide.
“Obviously, we fell short. We played really well in the first half [but] we could not just sustain it in the second half. We committed so many turnovers and I think we gave FEU a chance to come back in the game,” head coach Eric Altamirano said in an interview with Tinig ng Plaridel.
The team committed a total of 22 turnovers in the match, paving the way for FEU to score 20 points.
Francis led the Maroon charge with a double-double performance of 12 points and 10 rebounds, followed by Ka with 12 markers.
Meanwhile, Salvani powered the Lady Tamaraws, tallying 17 points and six rebounds, while Patio and Pasilang combined for 31 markers.
Stuck in pursuit
Unlike the women’s team that controlled the early quarters, the men’s team played catch-up from the opening tip.
The UP Men’s Basketball Team (MBT) found itself chasing for the entirety of the game, ultimately falling to the FEU Tamaraws, 79-90, in a later matchup at the same venue.
State U kept the pace early despite FEU’s quick start, with Francis Nnoruka answering the Tamaraws’ opening triple with a slam, before Gani Stevens followed with a layup off the backboard, 4-6.
Continuing to cut the deficit, guard Arvie Poyos drove through the Morayta-based squad’s defense for a basket, while Veejay Pre answered with a pump fake and finish at the rim to keep State U within four, 11-15.
UP struggled to sustain its push as missed shots and turnovers proved costly, allowing the Tamaraws to capitalize on the Maroons’ offensive slips with an 11-2 run to end the first quarter, 13-26.
The second period saw a quick turnaround as the maroon shirts outscored FEU with 28 points compared to the Tamaraws’ 17.
Pre kept the momentum up by working his way to the basket for a layup that knotted the first deadlock of the game at 32-all.
FEU regained a three-possession advantage late in the period, but junior Jacob Bayla immediately responded from the corner, followed by Pre’s floater at the paint to trim the gap to two, 41-43, before the halftime break.
Back-to-back turnovers early in the third frame put the Maroons on the back foot as the Morayta-based squad stretched its lead to 16, until Nnoruka drilled a layup and completed the and-one on the line to stop the bleeding.
FEU then quickly regained control with 32 points in the quarter, outscoring UP’s 14 to erase much of the squad’s second-quarter gains and send them into the final frame trailing by 20 points, 55-75.
Down by as many as 25 with 1:49 left in the payoff period, the Diliman-based squad mounted a 14-0 closing run led by rookie Seann Franco, but the late rally was not enough as the Maroons ultimately bowed to the Tamaraws.
Pre led UP’s offense with 16 points, five boards and an assist, while Nnoruka supported the scoring with a near double-double performance of 14 markers and nine rebounds.
Kirby Mongcopa’s breakout performance of 24 points, seven rebounds and three assists allowed FEU to emerge victorious.
Both teams look to come back to the winning column, with the WBT facing the Adamson Lady Falcons on Wednesday, Oct. 7, while the MBT will renew its rivalry with last season’s Finals foes De La Salle University Green Archers on Sunday, Oct. 11, both at the Mall of Asia Arena.
