Tams buck big Maroons scare

MANILA, Philippines - Trigger-happy Terrence Romeo scored when he had to as Far Eastern U survived winless University of the Philippines yesterday, 73-70, in the 75th UAAP men’s basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena.

“It’s good we found a savior in Terrence,” said FEU coach Bert Flores after the Tamaraws recovered from a stunning loss to National U last Thursday, and joined four-peat champion Ateneo on top of the standings at 5-1.

Romeo fired a career-high 24 points on a 7-of-16 shooting from the floor and a 5-of-7 clip from the stripe. He scored eight points in the final quarter, including two charities that pegged the final score with 2.1 ticks left.

The Tamaraws led from start to finish and went up by as many as 15 points. But the Maroons clawed back into the contest in the dying minutes and cut the deficit to 69-71 with a triple in the final 1:52.

At the height of the UP rally, the Tamaraws got away with a goal-tending violation by Anthony Hargrove on Diony Hipolito. Slo-mo replays showed the ball had already touched the board when it was swatted away by Hargrove.

“We got robbed on that goaltend,” said UP top scorer Mike Silungan (12 points).

Romeo, a school heartthrob, was happy with the win but said he’d even be happier once he learns how to get his teammates more involved in their offense.

“Kailangan ma-involve ko pa lalo ang mga teammates ko. Kasi kapag nakikita ko ring nangigigil ako (I get so anxious when I see the rim),” said Romeo, who also had nine rebounds and eight assists in 35 minutes of play.

In the other game, host National U made short work of Adamson, 77-62, and moved up to 4-2. The Falcons fell to 1-3.

The FEU coach said he wouldn’t mind if Romeo takes a hundred shots as long as he delivers the winning baskets.

“Kailangan namin ng puhunan para sa second round. Baka hindi na kami manalo doon eh (We need every win heading to the second round. We may find it hard to win),” said Flores as he looked back at their previous games.

The Tamaraws, losing finalists to the Blue Eagles the last two years, barely won their first three games this season against Santo Tomas (73-72), La Salle (48-46) and Adamson (65-62). Then came a 92-66 blowout of winless University of the East and the bitter loss to NU.

The Tamaraws are scheduled to face the Blue Eagles on Aug. 12 at the Araneta Coliseum, and this early the FEU mentor is feeling the pressure.

“Ateneo? Dun nga ako kinakabahan eh (That gives me the creeps). Two years na naming hindi tinatalo ang Ateneo (We haven’t beaten Ateneo for two years now),” said Flores, who was almost dragged into overtime by the Maroons.

Mark Lopez of UP went to the line with five seconds left and the Tamaraws ahead 71-69. He made the first free throw but missed the second, leading to a UP foul on Romeo who grabbed the rebound.

The scores:

First Game

FEU 73 – Romeo 24, Hargrove 10, Tolomia 7, Mendoza 6, Belo 6, Garcia 5, Bringas A. 5, Escoto 5, Cruz 3, Pogoy 2, Bringas M. 0.

UP 70 – Silungan 12, Soyud 11, Lopez 9, Ball 8, Padilla 8, Montecastro 8, Manuel 5, Hipolito 4, Gamboa 3, Mbah 2, Wierzba 0, Romero 0, Asilum 0.

Quarterscores: 22-15; 41-32; 60-51; 73-70

Second Game

NU 77 – Mbe 20, Parks 12, Villamor 9, Alolino 8, Rosario 7, De Guzman 7, Javillonar 5, Neypes 4, Labing-isa 3, Betayene 2, Singh 0, Rono 0.

Adamson 62 – Camson 13, Cabrera 11, Julkipli 8, Brondial 7, Cruz 5, Petilos 4, Trollano 3, Olalia 3, Monteclaro 3, Nuyles 2, Cabigas 2, Rios 1, Etrone 0, Abrigo 0.

Quarterscores: 20-11; 39-29; 66-44; 77-62