Cedrick Manzano powered Adamson University to a dominant 85-69 win over Mapua University to get back in the win column in Group A action of the 2022 FilOil EcoOil Preseason Cup, Sunday in San Juan City.
Manzano finished with a game-high 26 points on 13-of-15 shooting from the field, along with 12 rebounds and five blocks, carrying the Soaring Falcons to a 4-1 record in the group.
The Soaring Falcons had lapses in the third quarter after the Cardinals cut the deficit to one, 56-55, in the third frame by a Marc Cuenco layup with 1:22 remaining.
In the fourth frame, Adamson recovered as they got back to a 17-point lead, 81-64, courtesy of a Manzano jumper with 1:31 remaining.
With 27 seconds left on the game, Adrian Manlapaz finished the game off with a long two, 85-66.
“The challenge really for the team is how to fast track ‘yung improvement. Hindi madali, especially we rotate a lot of players,” said Adamson head coach Nash Racela. “Pero, yeah, small progress is still progress. So sa amin it’s a welcome development. As long as we see them improve day-to-day, we’ll be okay I think.”
Jerom Lastimosa and Ray Allen Torres scored 15 and 11 points respectively for Adamson, with the former adding three assists and two rebounds while the latter getting five rebounds and three assists.
Mapua, meanwhile, fell to 0-3 in the standings.
Bryan Lacap led the Cardinals with 22 points on 53-percent shooting, with four rebounds and two assists. Toby Agustin supplied 14 points, three rebounds, and an assist.
Both teams will return to action on Thursday. Adamson (4-1) will next face Emilio Aguinaldo College (2-2) at 9:00 AM, while Mapua (0-3) will try to stop its losing skid by facing National University (3-0) later that day at 1:00 PM.
The Scores:
Adamson 85 — Manzano 26, Lastimosa 15, Torres 11, Manlapaz 8, Hanapi 7, Maata 7, Erolon 3, Barasi 3, Colonia 3, V. Magbuhos 2, Calisay 0.
Mapua 69 — Lacap 22, Agustin 14, Garcia 9, Cuenco 6, Parinas 5, Salenga 4, Igliane 3, Soriano 2, Evangelista 2, Pido 2.
Quarterscores: 17-22, 46-35, 60-56, 85-69.
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The entire 2022 Filoil Ecooil Preseason Cup will stream LIVE on Smart Sports Facebook page
