FilOil: Romeo leads FEU past Perpetual

Many scoff at the trigger-happy Terrence Romeo with his iffy shot selection, but his team can’t complain when he’s making his shots.

Romeo scored 12 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter, as the Far Eastern University Tamaraws maintained a solid lead over the University of Perpetual Help System-Dalta Altas, winning 88-81, on Saturday at the FilOil Flying V Arena in San Juan, as part of the ongoing FilOil Flying V Hanes Preseason Cup.

The Tams benefited from their solid passing game, dishing out a total of 24 assists en route to wide-open shots and fast break opportunities. Overall, the Tams shot 48 percent for the entire game, converting 32 of their 67 shots.

Mike Tolomia had 13 points, while Mac Belo added 12. Super-senior R.R. Garcia chipped in 11 points.

Both teams were seeking to dig up their first win in the early weeks of the tournament. The Tams failed to eke out a win after a one-point loss to Adamson last week, 68-67, while the Altas bowed out to the Arellano University Chiefs, 74-65.

The Tamaraws now even their win-loss column with a win and a loss, while the Altas find themselves in a 0-2 hole to kick off their FilOil campaign.

Far Eastern U. started the first quarter on fire, scoring six straight points, courtesy of their big men Russel Escoto and Carl Bryan Cruz. After a jumper by Altas guard Chris Elopre, the Tams went on an 11-3 run, following two straight triples from starting guard Archie Iñigo and a vicious dunk-and-one from center Anthony Hargrove. The Tams led as by as much as 20-9 after a lay-up by Tolomia.

The Altas managed to find their way back into the game, as they scored eight straight points via connections Elopre, Nosa Omorogbe, and Juneric Baloria. The Tams failed to generate any offense in the last two minutes, and the quarter ended at 20-17 in favor of the Tams.

FEU coach Nash Racela inserted guard Terrence Romeo in the second quarter, giving his team a quick offensive boost, as the Tams scored seven early points on the way to a ten-point lead, 27-17. Another three by Romeo gave the Tams a sizable advantage at 30-18, but Juneric Baloria and his pals made it look surmountable, going on a 15-4 run themselves.

As the clock wound down in the third, the game momentarily saw flashes of guard Mike Tolomia’s former self, as he made two consecutive and-one fast break baskets in a span of a minute and thirty seconds, extending FEU's lead to 42-38. A lay-in by Altas forward Justin Alano however closed the gap at 42-40 heading to the half.


The Altas logged bewildering stats at the half, grabbing 10 offensive rebounds but scoring nary a second chance point. They scored 12 turnover points off 13 FEU turnovers, and made eight out of 11 free throws.

The green and gold made 48 percent of their shots to keep them in the game, knocking in five of their 11 attempts from downtown, They were perfect from the charity stripe, canning all seven of their attempts.

Omorogbe led all Perpetual scorers at the half, with 14 points on 4-10 shooting, followed by Baloria with eight of his own. Tolomia led all Tamaraws in scoring at the half with 11 points, followed by Iñigo and Romeo, who combined to go 4/5 from the three-point line.

Perpetual grabbed the lead in the third quarter after a triple by Elopre, but only momentarily, as the Tams put together a 15-6 run, drawing contributions from reserve Mac Belo who scored six. A free throw and a triple by Omorogbe, plus a lay-in by Baloria were the only points the Altas scored during that stretch.

The Tams kept up the effort in the fourth, maintaining the lead all throughout the final 10 minutes. A triple by Cruz gave the Tams a ten-point lead, which they would hold towards the end of the game, leading by 10 as much as six times, before settling for a final score of 88-81.

Romeo went on fire early in the fourth quarter, first getting fouled on a three-point shot and then making back-to-back triples. By the time Romeo made his 10th point of the quarter, the Tams were already up 79-68, as FEU’s defense canceled out Baloria and Omorogbe.

Juneric Baloria continued his scoring tear for Perpetual, averaging 19 points in two games for the Altas. Perpetual has also been benefitting from the stellar performance of Nigerian Nosa Omorogbe (22.5 points, 12.5 rebounds in two games), offsetting the absence of center Femi Babayemi.

The Altas kept close by making 26-of-36 free throws, off 26 fouls by FEU. However, Perpetual Help made only 7-of-25 long-range tries, and shot only 35 percent all-in-all from the field, finishing 24-of-69.

Omorogbe top-scored with 32 points for the Altas, followed by Baloria with 16 points, Elopre with 12, and Alano with 10.

Romeo continues to light up the stat sheet, now averaging 19.5 points in two contests for the Tams. - RAF/AMD, GMA News


The scores:

FEU – Romeo 18, Tolomia 13, Belo 12, Garcia 11, Cruz 8, Hargrove 7, Escoto 6, Inigo 6, Mendoza 2, Delfinado 2, Aguilon 0, Dennison 0, Luz 0, Jose 0

UPHSD –Omorogbe 32, Baloria 16, Elopre 12, Alano 10, Arboleda 4, Dizon 3, Oliveria 2, Lucente 2, Jolangcob 0, Bitoy 0, Bantayan 0, Ylagan 0

Quarter scoring: 20-17, 42-40, 64-55, 88-81