By Vince Matthew Jaramilla
Despite a shot at the top spot, Far Eastern University (FEU) Tamaraws crumbled in the second half against the National University (NU) Bulldogs, 65-69, in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 89 men’s basketball tournament earlier today, October 18, at the Blue Eagle Gym in Quezon City.
The green-and-gold squad took time to ramp up in the first quarter, struggling to keep up with NU’s fast-paced play and pesky defense, 12-19.
In the latter part of the frame, the Tamaraws finally put the pedal to the metal, mounting a 13-3 outburst with Cabs Cabonilas, Janrey Pasaol, and Kirby Mongcopa leading the charge, 25-22.
FEU sustained their fire in the second quarter, but Bulldog PJ Palacielo’s post presence and six-point streak proved to be a timeout-inducing struggle for head coach Sean Chambers with six minutes left, 34-31.
With Mo Konateh and Pasaol combining for 14 points in the canto to sustain the lead, Morayta cager Jedric Daa delivered the half’s final blow with a buzzer-beating and-one play for a three-possession game, 47-39.
In the third frame, the Tamaraws’ production on both ends took a step back as the Bulldogs mounted a run, causing FEU’s advantage to diminish, 56-54.
Despite another timeout by Chambers, the green-and-gold cagers could only muster 11 points, allowing the blue-and-gold team to snatch their first-ever lead, 58-59, to end the quarter.
The Morayta squad’s drought extended in the final canto, unable to score for the first three and a half minutes while the Jhocson-based cagers gradually expanded the margin, 58-63.
With FEU overshadowed, Jorick Bautista served as the spark as he fired up a solo 7-0 run — the guard’s first-ever points in the whole game, 65-63.
Unfortunately, the Tamaraws then gave up six unanswered markers from the Bulldogs.
As rebounding struggles persisted in the last two minutes despite multiple stops, the Chambers-led squad ultimately fell against NU and into a 4-3 deadlock in the standings, 65-69.
In a post-game interview with FEU Advocate, Chambers commended NU’s physicality and highlighted FEU’s need to learn how to handle the same intensity down the stretch.
“You gotta give credit to the other teams. You know, it just happens. The other team did some really good things down the stretch, the second half. And NU got more physical. And I don't think we handled the physicality very well [in] the second half. We hardly [shoot] any free throws with that kind of physicality. So, something that we have to learn,” he said.
The lead tactician also reiterated their goal of securing a semifinal spot while underlining the team’s room for improvement to get there.
“Again, our goal is [the] Final Four... You know, how will we get there? That’s our goal. And right now, we’re in third place. So far, we’re at where we want to be, but we can be better,” Chambers added.
Cabonilas led the scoring department with 14 points while Pasaol and Konateh also tallied double-digit markers with 10 each.
However, the Tamaraws only produced with a 31.5-percent efficiency, way behind the Bulldogs’ 43.8 percent.
FEU is still well in contention for a Final Four spot and will share the same win-loss record with University of Santo Tomas and either De La Salle University or Adamson University depending on their match result today.
Meanwhile, the schedule of the second round of eliminations is yet to be announced as of writing.
(Photo by Ma. Louela Luna/FEU Advocate)