Cruz, Sewa shine as Falcons hold off Maroons
Utilizing their height and heft advantage to the hilt, the Adamson Falcons cruised to a 79-67 win over the rebuilding and smaller University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons on Saturday to gain a share of the early UAAP Season 76 lead.
Wingman Jericho Cruz tallied 19 points, 11 coming in the second half, while hulking Cameroon import Ingrid Sewa powered his way to a double-double outing of 15 points and 10 rebounds while serving as the anchor in the paint for the Falcons.
With the win, Adamson joined opening-day winners Far Eastern University and University of Santo Tomas at the top of the eight-team field.
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Also coming up big for the Falcons, who lorded it over the smaller Fighting Maroons with a 53-29 rebounding edge, were veterans Rodney Brondial and Roider Cabrera, who combined for 20 markers and 18 rebounds.
Former La Salle gunner Joseph Marata emerged as the lone bright spot for the youthful Fighting Maroons, coming up with a game-high 20 points highlighted by three triples.
The Main Man: Is Jericho Cruz the next King Falcon? He’s certainly on his way.
The second-year wingman proved he can take up the cudgels, stringing 11 big points in the second half including big buckets after another that kept the Fighting Maroons at bay.
Honorable Mention: Ingrid Sewa is clearly a man to watch this season.
The wide-bodied Cameroonian threw his full weight around in the third canto, corralling one rebound after another while scoring 11 points, mostly on easy lay-ups.
Aside from those, Sewa imposed his intimidating presence in the lane that left the Fighting Maroons thinking twice before going to the basket.
Game Turning Point:
With Cabrera, Brondial and Harry Petilos doing the damage offensively, the Falcons broke loose in the second canto, leading by as many as 11, before the 6-foot-7 Sewa asserted himself in the third and stretched the Falcons lead to as high of 18, 53-35.
UP, however, refused to simply fold up, uncorking a 14-2 run capped by a Marata triple to move within six, somehow making it an interesting affair.
But the 6-foot Cruz took charge in a decisive 16-5 counterattack that put the Falcons comfortably ahead 71-54 with under six minutes remaining.
Quotable Quotes:
Adamson coach Leo Austria: “Kung hindi ako nagkakamali, every time natatalo kami sa opening game. But this time, we want to make sure na manalo kami. Ayaw ko rin mapahiya dahil kami ang host. Our gameplan was followed almost to the letter. I’m happy to see them follow our gameplan to the letter. From start to finish we were able to control the game.”
Jericho Cruz: “Nag-usap-usap kami ng mga teammates ko na gagawin namin ang lahat ng pinapagawa ni coach Leo.”
The scores:
AdU (79) - Cruz 19, Sewa 15, Cabrera 11, Brondial 9, Petilos 8, Julkipli 8, Rios 4, Inigo 3, Agustin 2, Trollano 0, Ochea 0, Monteclaro 0, Bernabe 0, Abrigo 0.
UP (67) - Marata 20, Soyud 10, Asilum 10, Lao 6, Wong 4, Reyes 4, Pascual 4, Ball 4, Gallarza 3, Harris 2, Paras 0, Ligad 0, Gingerich 0.
Scores: 18-13, 36-28, 60-49, 79-67
The scores:
AdU (79) - Cruz 19, Sewa 15, Cabrera 11, Brondial 9, Petilos 8, Julkipli 8, Rios 4, Inigo 3, Agustin 2, Trollano 0, Ochea 0, Monteclaro 0, Bernabe 0, Abrigo 0.
UP (67) - Marata 20, Soyud 10, Asilum 10, Lao 6, Wong 4, Reyes 4, Pascual 4, Ball 4, Gallarza 3, Harris 2, Paras 0, Ligad 0, Gingerich 0.
Scores: 18-13, 36-28, 60-49, 79-67
