The Adamson University (AdU) Soaring Falcons victoriously escaped a tight battle against the University of San Jose Recoletos (USJR) Jaguars, 62-59, in the 2015 FilOil-Flying V Hanes Premier Cup Wednesday afternoon at the FilOil-Flying V Arena in San Juan City.
The Soaring Falcons opened up the first quarter with a 10-0 run, with Harold Ng, Matthew Aquino, and Jersey Pedrosa providing baskets. USJR only scored in the 3:52 mark, 10-2, after an and-one layup from Iron Suano. AdU scored five more points to post a 15-4 lead with 2:05 remaining. USJR, meanwhile, scored a pair of baskets from James Regalado and Tin Nzuzi to close out the quarter trailing by seven, 15-8.
USJR notched up the pace in the following frame, as they erased a five-point, 20-15 deficit midway into the quarter to close within three, 23-24, with less than two minutes left. A Pedrosa layup with 1:24 to go gave AdU a three-point lead, 26-23, but USJR got the upper hand after scoring four straight points to take the lead, 27-26, approaching the halftime break.
Both teams played tight come the third canto, but the Jaguars still regained the upper hand late into the frame, regaining the lead after a 38-all deadlock, 41-38, after a triple from guard Miguel Gastador, 2:03 left on the clock. A pair of free throws from Suano ended the third frame with USJR up by a single point, 43-42.
The sleeping giant within Adamson seemed to have been awakened with less than six minutes left in the fourth and final quarter, as they pulled away with a 9-0 run behind center Matthew Aquino’s shooting from beyond the arc to post a ten-point lead, 58-48, with less than four minutes left. But USJR came back down the stretch, closing within three, 62-59, after two straight baskets from Regalado and Gastador with 2.8 ticks left. USJR tried to equalize, but AdU held on the ball long enough to seal the victory.
Aquino displayed a dominant game to pace AdU with 20 points, highlighted by 5 three-pointers, 15 rebounds, and 4 blocks. Guard William Polican added 11 markers and seven boards. Suano had 9 points to lead USJR, which has played their last game of the tournament today.
AdU will play this Saturday, May 16, against UPHSD Altas at 1:30 PM.
The Scores:
AdU 62 – Aquino 20, Polican 11, Pedrosa 8, Ochea 6, Bernardo 6, Pasturan 4, Barrera 4, Ng 3, Gumtang 0, Butron 0
USJ-R 59 – Suano 9, Navarra 8, Gastador 8, Villafranca 7, Labares 7, Regalado 6, Nzuzi 6, Dinolan 4, Galvez 2, Bayhonan 2, Villarias 0, Villahermosa 0, Catipay 0, Lajato 0
| TEAMS | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH |
| ADU (A, 1-0) | 15 | 26 | 42 | 62 |
| USJ-R (A, 1-7) | 8 | 27 | 43 | 59 |
