The Far Eastern University Tamaraws carved their names as the first-ever UAAP 3×3 champions after fending off the gutsy University of the East Red Warriors, 21-13, in the one-day tourney held at the Mall of Asia Music Hall.
The season hosts who innovated the competition displayed speed and control in the finals match. FEU hit the 21-point mark thru a Richard Escoto putback with 2:06 left in the clock therefore closing the match early and bagging the inaugural 3×3 championship.
Wendell Comboy caught fire and poured 11 points.
“Sobrang nakaka-overwhelm, siyempre hosts pa yung FEU and sabi nga ni Sir Mark [Molina] na dapat tayo ang champion kasi tayo ang hosts at tayo ang nakapag put up ng event na ‘to so konting pressure. Sobrang nag enjoy naman kami,” said the third year guard.
Each time the Red Warriors inch closer to the Tamaraws, a Comboy shot was always there to shut them down.
The FEU squad composed of Comboy, Michael Casiño, Richard Escoto, and Kenneth Tuffin limited Alvin Pasaol to just nine points after he scored 17 in the semifinals.
The Tamaraws had a tough journey to the championship as they ended up just the second seed in Group B with a 1-1 record. They had to overcome the DLSU Green Archers’ team in the Final Four, 15-12.
The Red Warriors, on the other hand, went 2-1 in Group A. During the semifinals, Pasaol scored 17 of the 19 UE points to defeat the NU Bulldogs, who put up a total of 16 points.
The hosts and champions hope that the successful turnout of this year’s tourney will pave the way to the regularization of the 3×3 basketball competition in the UAAP.
The Scores:
FEU 21 – Comboy 11, Escoto 5, Tuffin 4, Casiño 1
UE 13 – Pasaol 9, Varilla 3, Manalang 1, Maloles 3
