The University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons bounced back with double victories against Far Eastern University (FEU) Tamaraws on Saturday, Nov. 16, at the FilOil EcoOil Centre as the tail end of the UAAP Season 87 Basketball Tournament nears.
The men’s team ended their two-game losing skid, improving to a 10-3 record, while the women’s squad finally clinched a win in their second-round campaign for a 4-9 slate.
On fire from deep
After enduring back-to-back losses, the UP Men’s Basketball Team (MBT) claimed their tenth win of the season with an 86-78 wire-to-wire victory to eliminate the FEU Tamaraws from Final Four contention.
Team captain Gerry Abadiano led the Diliman-based squad with 19 points after knocking down six out of the hot-shooting UP’s 14 three-pointers while notching four rebounds, an assist, and two steals.
Despite a strong performance, the UP team captain downplayed his individual stats and put the team’s game plan into light as they worked towards the win.
“Siguro nagkataon lang na pumapasok ‘yung [mga] tira ko and hinanap ako ng mga teammates ko. Nag-stick kami sa sistema namin talaga na ginagawa namin,” said Abadiano during the post-game press conference.
A triad of Fighting Maroons also scored double digits in support of Abadiano, with JD Cagulangan and Francis Lopez lashing 12 markers each, followed closely by Aldous Torculas with 11 points.
Head coach Goldwin Monteverde commended the efforts his players displayed as they tamed a gritty FEU squad to recover from their slump.
“It makes you proud as a coach. Especially you know galing sa dalawang talo kami, seeing the heart of the players in the way we started, even through the imperfections of the game we were trying to execute at both [offensive and defensive] ends and for me, when you talk about bouncing back, this would be a first step for us.”
Abadiano also added that they dedicated their victory to former UP player and coach Ricky Dandan, who passed away three days before the match.
On the flipside, Jorick Baustisa paced the loss for the Tamaraws with 16 points, with Janrey Pasaol and rookie Veejay Pre firing 15 markers each.
A Quentin Millora-Brown layup opened the scoring gates for the maroon shirts as they quickly created separation at the opener, with an off-the-glass shot from Gani Stevens lifting UP to a 22-16 at the end of the first quarter.
The Tamaraws trimmed the gap midway through the second salvo with a Bautista trey setting off a 5-0 charge to tie the game at 32-all, but State U answered with back-to-back makes beyond the arc from Torres and Abadiano to hold on to a slim advantage at halftime, 42-39.
State U team captain Gerry Abadiano celebrates after making a three. Photo by UAAP Media Team
A trifecta from Lopez at the start of the third frame lit up a 19-5 bomb, pushing their lead to as much as sixteen before a late FEU counter-run shrunk UP’s edge to five, 67-62, approaching the payoff period.
The fourth quarter became a nip-and-tuck affair as FEU refused to go down, with Bautista pulling them within three, 81-78, with under a minute remaining.
With 31 ticks left, Cagulangan took control of the situation, delivering a dagger from deep range to shut the green shirts out of the Final Four.
Gutsy from the get-go
The UP Women’s Basketball Team (WBT) snapped a five-game losing streak after nabbing their first win of the second round with a commanding 76-61 victory over the FEU Lady Tamaraws.
The Fighting Maroons sustained their dominance against the Lady Tamaraws from start to finish, capitalizing on their breakthrough quarters throughout the match.
Back-to-back treys from Rizza Lozada and Arianne Sauz along with a Louna Ozar steal and bucket gave the maroon shirts an 11-2 lead early in the game.
Although the ladies in green and gold managed to close the gap to a one-point deficit, rookie Camille Nolasco stopped the bleeding for State U with a much-needed triple to end the first frame at 18-14.
A Kaye Pesquera triple fueled a 21-8 surge for the Maroons at the start of the second quarter, with a layup from Desiere Quinquinio giving them a comfortable 39-19 cushion.
Tamaraw trio Maxene Dela Torre, Yvette Marie Villanueva, and Cassandra Shane Salvani sparked a late 10-2 run in response, but State U managed to stay ahead with a 41-29 entering halftime.
Louna Ozar drives to the basket for a fastbreak play courtesy of an Erika Jimenez steal. Photo by UAAP Media Team
FEU trimmed the deficit down to seven at the opening of the third salvo via 4 straight points from Salvani before the Maroons regained control, maintaining a 16–point lead approaching the final stanza, 61-45.
Despite a 6-0 Maria Victoria Pasilang-led run to start the payoff period, State U continued to power past FEU as an Ozar layup pushed the lead back to 17 at the 4:41 mark, setting the stage for a rout.
Sophomore standout Ozar delivered a near triple-double output after tallying 14 points, 11 rebounds, eight assists, and a steal.
Alex Mendoza and Kaye Pesquera stepped up with 11 and 10 markers, respectively, fueling State U’s second-half scoring surge.
“My biggest lesson is to stay calm, to try to stay consistent even [when] we have a lot of down[s], and not to find excuses for that,” Ozar answered when asked about her biggest takeaway from the season at the post-game press conference.
A win away from finishing as the fifth-ranked team this season, UP WBT head coach Paul Ramos expressed that he doesn’t have any regrets albeit not being able to enter the Final Four round.
“[W]e tried to look at it as a learning process. If we look back to this season, I feel [like] there are key elements that we can learn from it. Maybe the cards that were dealt with us, we tried our best to use those to compete against the good teams. Unfortunately, maybe our strategies fell short and there were still some items that were lacking,” said Ramos.
FEU guard Salvani top scored for her team as she registered 21 points, followed by Maxene Dela Torre who recorded 12 markers off the bench.
Both squads will look to finish the second round on a high note as they square off with the University of the East at the same venue, with the men’s match tipping off at 5:30 p.m. on Nov. 20 and the women’s fixture on Nov. 23, 4 p.m.
UP MBT QUARTER SCORES: 22-16, 42-39, 67-62, 86-78
UP WBT QUARTER SCORES: 18-14, 41-29, 61-45, 76-61
