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UAAP: Sumang saves again, nails layup to give UE the win over UST


JM Noble (R) fights a double-team versus UST's Clark Bautista (L) and Kevin Ferrer. KC Cruz

(Updated 6:29pm) Roi Sumang's fourth quarter flurry carried the University of the East Red Warriors past the University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers, 68-67, in the second round of the UAAP Season 76 men's basketball tournament, Thursday, at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.

UE currently has the longest winning streak in the league with four wins, putting them at 5-3 and tying the NU Bulldogs at second place. UST slips to 4-4, sharing the fourth spot with the Ateneo Blue Eagles and the DLSU Green Archers.

[Read the play-by-play of this game here]

Leading by one, UST botched an inbounds play, issuing a cross-court pass that Kevin Ferrer was unable to handle, stepping out of bounds and leaving 18 seconds on the clock. Off a timeout, Roi Sumang dove into the lane and scored what turned out to be the go-ahead score. Without any timeouts left, the Tigers were forced to scramble. Clark Bautista tried to create with a drive, but slipped and tossed the ball to Kevin Ferrer in the ensuing scramble. That led to Ferrer throwing up a wild 17-footer that was nowhere near the hoop as time ran out.

Sumang turned it up in the clutch, scoring or assisting on 16 of UE's 21 fourth quarter points. He finished with 20 points and 10 assists. Ralf Olivares added 15 markers, while Charles Mammie notched 10 points and 15 rebounds.

"I've always been telling them to be patient with us. Style nito parang farming. Magtatanim, may mabubunga, may mamamatay," said UE head coach Boysie Zamar. But he also said that despite being the current hottest team in the league, they can't afford to be complacent.

"I've been telling them that our first round record [4-3] was an over-achievement," he added.

UST was better composed on offense than UE in the first quarter, as Karim Abdul steadied the Tigers' offense, to lead 11-6 on a Clark Bautista triple. UE then called a timeout and inserted Ralf Olivarez, and guard responded with fearless play. The sparkplug nailed two treys and scored 10 of their next 12 points, 21-18.

With a minute and change left, Roi Sumang chipped in four straight to push the Warriors ahead, 22-21, at the end of the first period.

In the second quarter, UE shifted to a zone defense to throw the Tigers off, a plan that was only half-successful since they quickly gave up fouls. Save for the occasional three-pointer, UE couldn't establish a rhythm on offense, either. The Tigers then forged a 32-30 lead on a turnover layup by Ed Daquioag.

With under three minutes to play, Charles Mammie returned to the floor after receiving two fouls in the first period. Mammie helped hold down the defensive end for the Warriors until Bautista broke loose in the last 30 seconds, as he scored five straight to keep the lead with UST at halftime, 38-37.

UST shot 13-of-35 (37.1 percent) through the first two quarters, while UE fared better at 15-of-34 (44.1 percent). The difference was at the charity stripe, where the Tigers were 8-of-15 (53.3 percent) against UE's 2-of-5 clip.

Karim Abdul (R) goes for a teardrop versus the UE defense. KC Cruz

The Tigers attacked the hoop en route to a 9-0 run to start the third quarter, drawing Mammie's third foul in the process, 47-37. However, UST suffered a blow later on as Mariano re-injured his left ankle on an ordinary jump-stop, and he had to be taken off the floor after the freak accident.

Meanwhile, UE gambled by keeping Mammie on the floor. The move appeared to work as they went on an 8-2 run, capped by a transition layup by Sumang, 49-45. But the Tigers kept their cool as Abdul and Ferrer composed a 9-2 run in the last two minutes, punctuated with Ferrer's triple as time expired, to lead heading into the final frame, 58-47.

Sumang engineered a Warriors run to kick off the fourth quarter, scoring or assisting for 12 unanswered points to snatch a 59-58 lead. UST finally garnered their first basket at around the five-minute mark, but they never led by more than six points as Lord Casajeros carried the offense while Sumang rested up, 67-64, with two minutes to play.

Both teams traded several makes, but UE didn't help themselves by launching three-pointers early in the clock. After failing to secure the defensive glass, the Warriors fed Sumang waiting upcourt for an easy two, 67-66, with 20 seconds left, leading up to the game's final moments.

UE finished the game shooting 29-of-70 (41.4 percent) against UST's 23-of-73 (31.5 percent) clip. The Tigers though had many chances to make it a closer game, converting just 15-of-22 (68.2 percent) from the charity stripe, while the Warriors made only a third of their 12 charity tries.

UE led 16-8 in turnover points, despite both teams committing 16 turnovers each.

Karim Abdul led all scorers with 23 points and 20 rebounds. Clark Bautista tallied 13 points. Kevin Ferrer and Ed Daquioag each registered 12 points and eight rebounds. - AMD, GMA News


The scores:

UE 68: Sumang 20, Olivarez 15, Mammie 10, Santos 6, Noble 5, Casajeros 5, Galanza 3, Sumido 2, Javier 2, Olayon 0, Pujante 0, Jumao-as 0, Hernandez 0, Guion 0

UST 67: Abdul 23, Bautista 12, Ferrer 12, Daquioag 12, Mariano 4, Hainga 2, Lo 1, Sheriff 0, Pe 0, Faundo 0

Quarter scoring: 22-21, 37-38, 47-58, 68-67
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