Seven-and-oh! Tamaraws sweep first round
Where Terrence Romeo goes, Far Eastern University follows.
The irrepressible 5-foot-11 playmaker came through with 10 of his season-high 26 points in the payoff period as the Tamaraws carved out a 74-71 victory over host Adamson to complete a sweep of the first round in UAAP Season 76 action at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
It was the seventh straight victory for FEU, which also swept the first round in 2010 but finished second to reigning five-time titlist Ateneo.
The Falcons, who were smarting from a painful 67-70 loss to La Salle last Wednesday, dropped their second straight game and fourth overall for a 3-4 record alongside the Blue Eagles.
Jericho Cruz tallied a team-high 21 points, 10 coming in the second canto, while Ingrid Sewa and forward Rodney Brondial combined for 26 points and hauled down 25 of the Falcons’ 48 rebounds.
The Main Man: Terrence Romeo certainly made a good account of himself as far as the race for this season’s league MVP is concerned.
Groping for form in the first three quarters, the 5-foot-11 guard waxed hot in time for the Tamaraws with 10 big points in the fourth, including the team’s final seven points spiked by a booming triple for a 74-69 lead with 24.6 seconds to play.
Honorable Mention: This time, it was Anthony Hargrove who shone on both ends for FEU in the fourth period.
The 6-foot-6 American made a pair of jumpers early then completely made life miserable for the hulking 6-foot-7 Sewa, who only had two points, both coming from the charity stripe.
Game Turning Point: In a back-and-forth game that had the intensity of a playoff game, the Tamaraws regained full control when Romeo banked in a triple off an RR Garcia that extended their lead to 69-63.
Guard Ar-raouf Julkipli, however, kept the Falcons within striking distance, canning three straight points including a gutsy lay-up to cut the deficit at three going to the final 1:54.
After a series of dry offensive thrusts, Romeo converted a fall-away jumper over Julkilpi but Adamson forward Roider Cabrera retaliated with a quick trey to pull them within 69-71 with 48.2 seconds to play.
Then it was another highlight reel for Romeo, who shook off Adamson defender Celedonio Trollano Jr. with his signature cross-over move then pulled up for the back-breaking triple at the top of the key to give FEU a big five-point cushion, time down to just 24.6 seconds.
In the ensuing play, Cruz converted a twisting lay-up and, after FEU guard Mike Tolomia incurred a five-second inbound violation with 15.9 seconds left, Adamson tried to force an overtime but Julkipli wasted the golden chance as he attempted a hurried three-point attempt, virtually sealing the deal for the Tams with two seconds left.
He Said It:
FEU coach Nash Racela: “It (sweep) is an accomplishment but, in our minds, we don’t accomplish anything if we can’t get our goal. We still need to have a mindset on that big picture. We still have a lot of things to work on. All we did was to take advantage while other teams are struggling. Get as many wins as we can. In the second round, most of the teams will be complete and we will be a target. Ang importante as amin is to be ready. We keep on reminding them never to think they're better than the other team so we'll always be on our toes.”
The scores:
FEU (74) – Romeo 26, Pogoy 9, Garcia 9, Belo 9, Tolomia 8, Hargrove 4, Mendoza 3, Sentcheu 2, Jose 2, Cruz 2, Inigo 0.
Adamson (71) – Cruz 21, Sewa 13, Brondial 13, Trollano 5, Julkipli 5, Agustin 4, Abrigo 4, Petilos 3, Cabrera 3, Rios 0, Monteclaro 0, Inigo 0.
Quarterscores: 20-13, 36-37, 54-56, 74-71.
