Far Eastern University (FEU) drew first blood in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 77 men’s basketball finals, outlasting National University (NU) 75-70 on Saturday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The Tamaraws banked on a strong second half performance from unsung heroes Roger Ray Pogoy and Achie Inigo, with the former scoring 10 points in the pivotal third quarter and the latter scoring all of his 12 points in the second half.
The Bulldogs opened the game by bullying the Tamaraws inside the paint as they erected a 12-point lead, 30-18, in the second quarter.
FEU then played a running game, scoring 11 straight points off dribble drives from leading scorer Mike Tolomia and putbacks from Raymar Jose.
The third quarter commenced with Tolomia jumper and a triple from Mac Belo to tie the game at 40.
That signaled the explosion of swingman Pogoy, who scored on an acrobatic reverse layup off the break, then followed up with a triple and a fastbreak layup to erect a 47-41 lead for the Tamaraws.
Center Anthony Hargrove then got the better of his counterpart Alfred Aroga, scoring on two putbacks while the diminutive Inigo joined the rebounding battle and scoring on layups for a 60-47 lead, the biggest lead of the Tamaraws in the game.
The Bulldogs, first timers in the finals since 1970, could not give up though as the crippled squad relied on the hulking Aroga and the experienced hands of Gelo Alolino, who connected on drives and post-up shots to inch closer at 65-69.
A well set inbound pass to an open Rodolfo Alejandro brought the Bulldogs from within three points, after NU’s Final Four top scorer made a triple for a 68-71 deficit.
Unfazed, the Tamaraws played insurance basketball as they went to the more experienced hands of Belo, who converted a dribble drive off a high pick from Pogoy for a two-possession lead, which proved to be the insurance basket for FEU as Aroga and Alolino split their successive free throws in the endgame.
“We just went back to our strengths just for us to get this win. Perfect plays, perfect timing,” said a jubilant FEU coach Nash Racela after the game.
Tolomia topscored for the Tamaraws with 15 points while Pogoy added 14 points and Inigo, 12 points.
Aroga led the Bulldogs with 17 points and eight rebounds while Alolino added 14 points. Power forward Jeth Troy Rosario, who sat out most of the fourth quarter due to a sore knee, added 12 points and eight rebounds.
