Rookie-laden Far Eastern University (FEU) Tamaraws played their hearts out against the defending champions De La Salle University (DLSU) Green Archers but ultimately crumbled in the end, 62-68, in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 87 men’s basketball tournament earlier today, September 25, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.

In a post-game interview with FEU Advocate, rookie Veejay Pre stated that despite the loss, he was proud of the team for their great display against DLSU.

“Hindi naman sa masaya pero naggo-grow kami na 'yung process namin is gumaling every game and pinakita namin sa La Salle na hindi kami basta-basta and kaya talaga namin lumaban. Bounce back na lang kami next game (Not to say I’m happy with the outcome, but I’m happy that our young team is growing, and that we showed we can compete. We just need to bounce back for the next game),” the rookie shared.

The Tamaraws had a rough start against the Archers, as they were down at 0-7 leading to an early timeout at the 8:02 mark.

After the dismal start, FEU held their ground and cut the lead to four after a trey-ball from guard Jorick Bautista, 7-11.

As they continued to play catchup, the Morayta squad closed the gap to six after a vicious dunk along the baseline by rookie Adam Nakai, 13-19.

The second quarter started fast with quick buckets from guard Janrey Pasaol.

However, the Tamaraws could not handle the flashy passes from the Green Archers as they quickly scored in bunches, 23-33.

Coach Sean Chambers then called a timeout to stop the bleeding.

Off the break, Bautista quickly scored a three after receiving a baseline pass to cut the lead to seven with 3:05 left in the canto, 26-33.

Despite the good defense displayed by FEU in the last stretch of the second frame, DLSU capped it off with a three to add to their lead, 28-38.

Another fast paced start in the second half came from the green-and-gold squad as Pre and Nakai hastily scored to cut the lead to a single digit, 32-40.

On the other hand, forward Rojan Montemayor helped his team in keeping the momentum with his five-point swing from a triple and a putback.

The Morayta squad continued to show their grit and determination on defense as they forced six turnovers en route to a 19-4 run. In addition, Pasaol displayed his shooting as he ended the third quarter with a triple to cut the lead to one, 50-51.

With the momentum up for grabs, the fourth quarter was a back-and-forth affair from both teams with Pasaol continuing to show his footing with a quick lay to give them the lead, 56-55.

However, FEU just could not contain DLSU in the paint, as the latter bullied their way to a five-point cushion, 56-61.

With looming foul trouble on the green-and-gold’s side, the green-and-white cagers took advantage and went to the charity stripe for the rest of the game.

Although the rookie-laden squad showed their grit until the end, they failed to close out against the defending champs, 62-68.

In another interview, Coach Sean Chambers stated his pride for his young squad.

“I told the guys, I hate losing more than I like winning but I [have] never been extremely happy with the group, the way they performed today and you’re starting to see our freshman guys get more comfortable. I truly believe when the second half of the season comes, we’re gonna be a problem, but it’s going to take a little bit of time to get comfortable in this atmosphere,” he stated.

Tamaraw foreign student-athlete Mohamad Konateh crashed the boards with intensity putting up an impressive statline with 25 rebounds along with his 12 points. 

Meanwhile, guard Pasaol added 13 points, three assists and three steals. His fellow rookie teammate Pre also contributed with 11 points, four rebounds and three assists.

Now with a 0-5 standing in the first round of elimination, the Tams are now seeking their first win against Ateneo de Manila University on Sunday, September 29, at the same venue.

- Marcus Isaac D.G Bandong
(Photo courtesy of the UAAP)