Though they apparently woke up on the wrong side of the bed, the Far Eastern University Lady Tamaraws were able to pick it up late, storming back from 17 points down to continue the struggles of the Ateneo de Manila University Lady Eagles, 73-71, Wednesday afternoon at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
Lady Tamaraws head coach Bert Flores rued with the flat start of his team, saying that they were complacent coming off a strong first round.
“Kasi galing kami sa magandang first round. Sabi ko nga sa kanila, baka nabusog na sila sa 5-2. E hindi pa naman kami sure sa Final Four. Ganiyan ang nangyari sa akin sa men’s dati, kailangan mamuhunan ka sa second round,” shared Flores.
“Nakalaban pa namin last game NU, talo kami ng thirty points. Sabi ko, huwag kayo ma-down. Heads up lang kayo,” he added, as FEU had been coming off a 58-81 loss at the hands of the NU Lady Bulldogs last October 13.
Surprisingly, FEU were down by as much as 17 points in the game – 13 entering the final frame. But Clare Castro was unstoppable to end the game, scoring 10 points in a 15-5 spurt to knot the game at 69-all with 1:14 left.
Castro finished with 21 points, 10 rebounds, and four blocks.
Jhazmin Joson tried to stop the bleeding, but FEU were not to be denied. With the game tied at 73-all with eight second left, Castro was able to find a cutting Valerie Mamaril for the game-winning layup. With no timeouts left, Ateneo pushed the ball. but misses from downtown and a putback completed FEU’s comeback.
“Sama ng gising e, pero sabi ko sa kanila ‘never give up’. Third quarter bumaba na ng 10 points, tapos ayun na. Adjust kami ng adjust. Nung huli, bahala na maka-stop basta huwag lang maka-score si Jollina [Go],” Flores said.
Mamaril, FEU’s team captain, had 14 points, seven rebounds, and four assists.
FEU remain in solo second with a 6-2 slate, while handing Ateneo their sixth straight loss to drop them to 2-6.
Go was on fire to start the game, knocking down five triples for 21 points. Katrina Guytingco had 18 points, eight rebounds, five assists, and four steals.
The Lady Tamaraws will next face the University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigresses on Saturday, October 20 at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum. The Lady Eagles look to snap out of their funk when they take on the University of the Philippines Lady Maroons on Sunday, October 21 at the Filoil Flying V Centre.
The Scores:
FEU (73) – Castro 21, Mamaril 14, Quiapo 14, Taguiam 9, Vidal 8, Bahuyan 4, Adriano 3, Antiola 0, Bastastas 0, Payadon 0.
ADMU (71) – Go 21, Guytingco 18, Joson 13, Villamor 6, Buendia 4, Newsome 3, Cancio 2, Chu 2, Nimes 2.
Quarterscores: 16-22, 32-40, 50-62, 73-71
