Tolentino lifts FEU past DLSU to list win no. 1 in UAAP 81

Arvin Tolentino led the FEU Tamaraws to list a win against the DLSU Green Archers, 68-61, on Sunday afternoon at the Mall of Asia Arena.

With DLSU having a two-point lead, less than four minutes left on the clock, a Tolentino trey at 3:25 sparked FEU to a 7-0 run, 62-56. DLSU's Aljun Melecio tried to save the Archers, but his own five-point effort late in the game was not enough, giving the Tamaraws their first win this season.

Tolentino scored the highest among the Tams with 13 points. For the Archers, Santillan led the pack with 19 points, while Melecio made 11 markers.

JUST IN: FEU Tamaraws defeat DLSU Green Archers, 68-61 #UAAPSeason81 @gmanews pic.twitter.com/jIZbLPSHBb

— JK Carandang (@jk_carandang) September 9, 2018

In their last face-off, DLSU had the upper hand during the Final Four game. Now, the tables have turned, at least in their first round face-off. "Iba 'yung pakiramdam. We got our first win of the season. Mahirap talaga kalaban ang La Salle," FEU head coach Olsen Racela said.

"I like our improvement from last year and hopefully tuloy-tuloy 'yun throughout the season," he added.

Asked about his game-changing three, Tolentino said, "Sina Coach nagsabi sa akin, ok naman shots ko nung una. Sabi nila nung half-time, keep taking shots, tapos ayun, nagkataon open ako nung time na 'yun. Nagkataon din na crunch time."

The Tamaraws will face UST on Wednesday while DLSU will play Adamson on Saturday.

Scores:

FEU: Tolentino - 13, Tuffin - 11, Iñigo - 10, Comboy - 9, Stockton - 9, Cani -7 , Parker - 5, Ebona - 2, Escoto - 2.

DLSU: Santillan -19, Melecio - 11, Caracut - 9, Baltazar - 8, Montalbo - 5, Serrano - 3, Bates - 2, Samuel - 2, Manuel - 1, Dyke -1.

— Justin Kenneth Carandang/BM, GMA News