Tams, Stags beat separate foes in FilOil preseason tourney

Far Eastern University (FEU) remained unbeaten in Group B, while San Sebastian College-Recoletos (SSC-R) joined Ateneo on top of Group A after beating separate foes in the FilOil Flying V Hanes Preseason Premier Cup at The Arena in San Juan City. FEU coasted to an 81-49 victory over College of Saint Benilde, with the Tamaraws clinching their seventh straight win to move one game away of sweeping their elimination round assignments. The Blazers remain winless after six games. The Stags downed Arellano, 82-68, in the final game to join idle Ateneo on top of their group with a 5-1 card. The Morayta-based squad pulled away early for the easy win. FEU used a 20-0 start before settling for a 25-5 count at the end of the first quarter. The Tams hope to complete a seven-game sweep of their Group B assignments when they face the Letran Knights on May 28. FEU coach Bert Flores said the Tams’ real test will be in the next round, where the top four teams in their group will face the other group in the crossover quarterfinal round. "Kahit wala kaming talo sa eliminations, kung matalo kami sa quarterfinals, wala na rin," said Flores. Terrence Romeo led the Tamaraws with 14 points while Pipo Noundou scored 12. The Stags, meanwhile, erupted for 27 points in the third period to turn a 36-34 halftime lead to a 63-44 advantage entering the final 10 minutes of the contest. The Stags were never threatened after that. Ian Sangalang, who led San Sebastian’s third quarter breakaway, finished with 17 points and seven rebounds while Jonathan Semira added 13 markers, eight rebounds and five assists. Calvin Abueva tallied 11 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists also for the Stags. Arellano dropped to 1-5. Earlier, Nate Matute drilled in two key three-pointers to lift Jose Rizal University to a 74-68 win over Emilio Aguinaldo College. Matute had 20 points on a 5-of-7 shooting from beyond the arc to help the Heavy Bombers end a three-game slide and improve their record to 3-4. He hit back-to-back triples to put JRU ahead, 66-60, in the 2:57 mark of the final period. – Reuben Terrado, JVP, GMA News