FEU nips NU in 2OT, shadows Adamson for No. 2 spot

Far Eastern University showed its character by coming back from 18 points down to beat National University in double overtime, 84-82, Sunday in the 74th UAAP men's basketball tournament at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Tamaraws improved to 7-4 to remain on track of clinching the number two spot that holds a a twice-to-beat advantage. FEU hiked its record to 7-4, one-game behind Adamson's 8-3 slate after the Falcons won over University of the Philippines, 64-51, in the first game. "We can't afford to relax at this point. All the teams are strong so what's important for us is the mindset that all teams have a chance at beating us," said FEU coach Bert Flores. Timely hits by Aldrech Ramos, who finished with 19 points, kept FEU in the game after the Tams trailed by 18 (51-33) in the third. His back-to-back three-pointers finally tied the count at 60-all in the fourth. "We don't have a choice but to step up because I'm one of the veterans in the team," said Ramos, a member of the Smart Gilas Pilipinas national team who is currently in the inactive list. "They really don't give up. They really work hard for every win," said Flores after another close victory. RR Garcia bounced back from a lackluster outing with a steal and lay-up to force overtime before banging in five of his 10 points in the second extension period. Bobby Ray Parks had another huge outing for NU with 32 points—the third time he scored 30 or more—in another losing effort for the Bulldogs, who dropped to a 4-7 win-loss slate that dimmed their hopes of entering the Final Four. After NU took a three-point lead at the start of the second overtime, Garcia made five straight points before Terrence Romeo stole NU's Joshua Alolino's cross-court pass to Parks and scored on a fastbreak to push FEU on top, 83-79. Emmanuel Mbe converted a tip-in to cut the deficit to two but FEU got the breaks of the game as Parks, who was fouled by Romeo, split his free throws for an 83-82 count with 21 seconds left in the game. Ramos made one of his free throws at the other end to give FEU a two-point lead. NU failed in its bid of sending the game into a third OT after Alolino missed on his lay-up attempt while Joseph Terso's game-winning three-point try failed to hit its mark to end the game. It looked like NU was on its way to an upset win when Joeffrey Javillonar hit a long jumper that was ruled a three-pointer after a video review for a 70-68 edge with 50.7 seconds left. Two possessions later, Dennis Villamor took the ball away from Garcia but the 2010 season Most Valuable Player quickly redeemed himself with a steal and lay-in time down to 28.2 seconds in regulation to tie the game at 70-70. Ramos and Garcia hit three free throws, 76-74, but Parks tied the game with two charities to send the game into a second overtime. Romeo had 16 points, seven rebounds and seven assists while Chris Exciminiano and Russel Escoto added 14 and 10 markers each. Mbe finished with 11 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks while Villamor had 10 for the Bulldogs.