DEFENDING champion UST overcame a 21-point deficit but committed costly errors down the stretch as Far Eastern University (FEU) escaped with a 71-68 win and booked the last spot in the Philippine Collegiate Champions League (PCCL) semis at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig last Dec. 3.
Luzon-Metro Manila champion FEU joined NCAA champion San Beda College, UAAP titleholder De La Salle University and Southern Islands champion Southwestern University from Cebu in the Final Four.
The shorthanded UST squad fielded only nine players. Forward Aljon Mariano was recovering from an ankle surgery done last October while Jeric Teng is now playing in the Philippine Basketball Association.
Kevin Ferrer, who finished with 15 points, tried to extend the game into overtime, but missed his three-pointer with 4.6 seconds remaining.
With UST leading in the 1:54 mark, 67-65, Ferrer committed an unsportsmanlike foul on FEU’s Mark Belo, who then made both of his charities to tie the game and seize the momentum.
Leading FEU with 19 points, Belo made two more free throws in the last six seconds to seal the final tally.
UST center Karim Abdul came up big for the Tigers with 20 markers, 13 of them in the payoff period, and 11 rebounds.
“Down 17, we fought and played catch up in the fourth quarter. You can say we still have the heart for the game,” coach Pido Jarencio said.
In the first four minutes of the third quarter, FEU scored 10 straight points, piloted by Mike Tolomia’s aggressiveness in the paint, to lead by as much as 21 points, 24-45.
Abdul dominated in the fourth frame and powered a 25-8 UST rally to tie the game at 65. The Tigers took the lead, 67-65, via a Jamil Sheriff drive in the 2:17 mark.
The Tamaraws led early in the game, finishing the first frame with a 15-3 edge. The Tigers kept coming back as Ferrer knocked down a trey to trim FEU’s lead to nine, 18-27, and start an 11-4 UST rally.
A day before losing to the Tamaraws, the Tigers banked on Clark Bautista’s 23-point output to outclass NCAA runner-up Colegio de San Juan de Letran, 77-60.
The Tigers waxed hot from beyond the arc in the fourth quarter, hitting seven three-pointers to pull away for good, 65-46. The graduating Bautista accounted for four three-pointers, while Ferrer had three.
Mark Cruz steered Letran with 18 points. Ferrer and Abdul led UST with 13 and 11 markers, respectively.
Last year, UST took home the title at the expense of erstwhile five-time UAAP champion Ateneo de Manila University, 81-76.
