Valerie Mamaril’s hot hands were more than enough to tow the Far Eastern University Lady Tamaraws to a 54-44 victory over the Ateneo de Manila University Lady Eagles this Wednesday morning at the Blue Eagle Gym in Katipunan, Quezon City.
The veteran guard led the Lady Tamaraws with 20 points at the back of 12-out-of-15 free throw shooting.
“Nagawa namin yung game plan to stop the (Ateneo) shooters,” shared FEU coach Bert Flores. “Kahit papano nagawa namin yung gameplan na try to attack then pressure. Bigyan namin si (Castro)… Dun kami kahit papano. Ma-sustain hanggang third quarter kasi third quarter yung sakit namin minsan.”
The Lady Tamaraws’ bright start to the game granted them a sizable separation from the Lady Eagles. Clare Castro and Fatima Quiapo scored consecutive baskets to hand FEU a 20-9 cushion away from Ateneo early in the second period.
Quiapo’s charity then extended FEU’s lead to 25-13 halfway through the quarter, but Ateneo found a way to trim the deficit thanks to a 5-1 run capped off by Cara Buendia’s freebies as the halftime score read 26-18 in favor of the Lady Tamaraws.
Ateneo continued its momentum after the break. Buendia’s three cut the Lady Tamaraws’ edge to 23-26. However, the Lady Eagles’ perimeter shooting woes prospered soon afterwards which allowed Flores’ wards to pounce on them.
Mamaril produced six points in FEU’s 12-5 run to allow the Lady Tamaraws to close the third period strongly at 41-28. Beforehand, though, it was her free throws that provided FEU their biggest lead of the ball game at 41-26 with 26.9 seconds left in the quarter.
However, Ateneo looked to make a comeback of epic proportions. Buendia and Joanne Nimes combined for a 9-0 run as the Lady Eagles trailed the Lady Tamaraws 37-41 in the final period. But the Katipunan school soon ran out of gas once again, and FEU capitalized.
Castro and Mamaril’s one-two punch brought the momentum back to the Lady Tamaraws, while Blance Bahuyan’s lay-up closed a 9-4 run to virtually kill off the Lady Eagles’ valiant resistance at 50-41 with 2:22 to go in the game.
Castro also helped the FEU cause with nine points and 11 rebounds.
Nicole Cancio’s jumper and Buendia’s free throw made things interesting right at the end, but the Lady Tamaraws held on for their third win of the season with a 54-44 victory over the Lady Eagles.
“Importante kase ang game na ito eh dahil sa standings. First round kailangan mo mamuno. Sayang naman yung last game (vs Adamson),” added Flores who commented that his wards have to watch out for La Salle’s Khate Castillo and Camille Claro in their next game as well as prepare to break the Lady Archers’ full-court press.
FEU converted 15 freethrows from 24 attempts compared to Ateneo’s four from 11. Buendia paced the Lady Eagles with 15 points and 14 rebounds.
Both schools’ next games will be on September 30 at the Blue Eagle Gym. FEU (3-1) look to get their fourth victory against the De La Salle University Lady Archers at 11:00 AM, while Ateneo (2-2) hope to bring down the University of Santo Tomas Tigresses afterwards at 3:00 PM.
The Scores:
FEU (54) – Mamaril 20, Castro 9, Quiapo 8, Antiola 5, Taguiam 5, Bahuyan 4, Adriano 2, Vidal 1, Payadon 0, Bastatas 0, Abat 0.
ADMU (44) – Buendia 15, Cancio 9, Guytingco 7, Nimes 5, Joson 2, Villamor 2, Newsome 2, Go 2, Miranda 0, Payac 0, Chu 0, Gino-gino 0.
Quarterscores: 15-9, 26-18, 41-28. 54-44.
