UAAP: Tams gut out win anew, trump Archers late

(Updated 4:37pm) The Far Eastern University Tamaraws held the De La Salle University Green Archers to just two points in the final five minutes of the game, en route to a 48-46 win, Sunday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena, in the 75th season of the UAAP. A pair of Jovet Mendoza charities with 5:23 left to play gave the Archers a 44-41 lead, but a 4-0 burst by the Tams gave them a one-point advantage before Norbert Torres' pair of free throws, 1:43 left. RR Garcia managed a split at the line to tie the game, 1:27 remaining on the clock, then on the next play, a crucial turnover by Almond Vosotros gave the ball back to the Tams. Off a timeout, FEU head coach Bert Flores inserted Mike Tolomia, and on an isolation play against rookie Jeron Teng, nailed a jumper with 47.6 seconds for the go-ahead score. Teng tried to make up for it on the other end, but missed. Then, Romeo missed a triple that could have clinched the game, but luckily, Arvie Bringas, a former DLSU Green Archer who transferred to FEU, got the repossession and the foul. However, Bringas missed on the charities, which opened the door for DLSU to steal this late. With no timeouts remaining however, Mark Tallo raced the ball upcourt. Trapped by the Tamaraws' defenders, he fumbled the ball and was forced to give it up to Vosotros. His trey from the top of the circle bounced out, preserving the victory for the Tams. Third-year guard Terrence Romeo was the lone player in double-digit scoring, tallying 10 points and five rebounds for the Tamaraws. Mike Tolomia and Anthony Hargrove had seven points apiece. Four Archers, namely Yutien Andrada, Almond Vosotros, Jovet Mendoza and Norbert Torres had eight points each. Torres, their Fil-Canadian center, had 12 rebounds. La Salle easily could have produced a better outcome: the Archers were 16-or-26 from the line, or 27.8 percent, and gave up 15 turnovers to the Tamaraws' nine. The Tamaraws on the other hand, despite an 8-for-18 game from the line, still enjoyed a 12-6 advantage in second-chance points. In the early game, the Archers had trouble scoring against FEU in halfcourt sets. The Tams, on the other hand, crept ahead, 5-2, off an offensive rebound play by Anthony Hargrove. Jeron Teng scored the next four at the rim for La Salle, but RR Garcia had other plans. After a goaltend on a layup by Romeo, he set up Mac Belo for a trey, then finished in transition to push the Tamaraws ahead, 13-6, with three minutes to play in the first quarter. The Archers were hampered by poor free throw shooting at the start of the second quarter. They went 2-for-6 from the line during a three-minute stretch. Back-to-back layups from Norbert Torres tied the game, then a three-point play by Teng completed a 9-0 run for DLSU to take the lead, 18-15. The Tamaraws found their first field goal with under six minutes to play as Roger Pogoy and Arvie Bringas scored on consecutive possessions and briefly re-took the lead. Andrada scored four straight though as the Archers unloaded an 8-0 volley to take a 25-19 advantage. FEU fought back late, capping a 4-1 burst with as Romeo curled off a screen and buried a trey with thirty seconds left in the half, trimming the deficit to two, 26-24, at the break. In the third quarter, Bringas and RR Garcia extended the run with four unanswered, but the Archers countered with a layup from Jarelan Tampus to keep a slim 28-27 margin. However, both teams went on a scoring drought for most of the period as plays were marred by poor execution. Vosotros broke the Archers' dry spell with a high-arcing shot over Carl Cruz with under four minutes in the quarter. But the Tamaraws had the better say as Romeo dropped four in an 8-2 run. A long jumper from Vosotros put La Salle in a one-point hole, 35-34, heading into the fourth. The Archers played without lead point guard LA Revilla, who was bothered by tendonitis. La Salle suffered its first lost to go to 2-1, while FEU improved to 2-0. - AMD, GMA News The scores: FEU 48: Romeo 10, Tolomia 7, Hargrove 7, Pogoy 6, Garcia 6, A Bringas 5, Cruz 4, Belo 3, Mendoza 0, Escoto 0, M Bringas 0 DLSU 46: Andrada 8, Vosotros 8, Mendoza 8, N Torres 8, Teng 6, Tallo 4, Van Opstal 2, Tampus 2, T Torres 0, Webb 0, Manguera 0 Quarter scores: 15-9, 23-26, 35-34, 48-46