MANILA, Philippines - Far Eastern University showed its readiness for this year’s UAAP cage wars as it topped the fourth Fr. Martin Collegiate Open Cup with an 81-70 victory over San Sebastian in the final at the San Beda gym yesterday.
Using the same roster it will field in Season 72 set to fire off July 11, the Tams stamped their class over the Stags in a duel of unbeaten teams to complete their nine-game sweep of the annual tournament backed by Magnolia Beverages, Molten, Basketbolista and www.gameface.ph.
Mark Barroca, co-skipper of the Smart Gilas Pilipinas team gearing up for a crack at a slot in the 2012 London Olympics, exploded with 24 points to power the Tams to their first title this year.
Rookies Ryan Garcia, a former RP youth team hotshot, and Hippolyte Noundou, a Cameroonian, likewise made a good impression by firing 18 and 10 points, respectively.
The win was FEU coach Glen Capacio’s third but he said the feat was just a minor victory and they must prepare harder for the bigger task ahead.
“This is a good win for us but we haven’t proven anything yet, this is not the UAAP,” said Capacio, a many-time member of the All-Defensive Team in the PBA.
Capacio said this is the first of the three big tournaments lined up for FEU in its buildup for the UAAP with the Tams set to compete in the Nike Summer League and Filoil/Flying V.
It was the first setback by the Stags after sweeping their first nine matches. - Joey Villar