FAR Eastern University used a strong fourth quarter surge to take down University of Santo Tomas, 90-79, on Sunday in the Filoil EcoOil Preseason Cup in San Juan.
Bryan Sajonia was a spark off the bench for the Tamaraws, going 4-of-8 from deep and finishing with 20 points, five rebounds, three assists, and two steals to level their standing to 3-3 in Group B.
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"Malaki ang ineexpect namin sa kanya but we're not giving him any pressure," said coach Olsen Racela.
"Every year, ang goal naman ng lahat is to get better lalo na pag may ga-graduate o may mawawala. Walang isang taong magfi-fill ng spot na yan and collective yan, sabay-sabay ang improvement. And we're happy with the development ng players namin."
Ximone Sandagon also collected 13 points and nine rebounds, Xyrus Torres had 12 points built on four triples, and James Tempra had 11 points, six boards, and two assists.
L-Jay Gonzales also had his best game in the tourney with 10 points, five rebounds, and five dimes off the bench.
FEU lost an early 13-point advantage and allowed UST to take a 56-50 lead in the third quarter before the Tamaraws got their act together and used a 27-point fourth quarter flurry to seal off the win.
Kean Baclaan paced the Growling Tigers with 19 points, seven rebounds, three assists, and two steals.
Sherwin Concepcion also had 13 points from three treys, on top of five boards as UST fell to 1-4.
Meanwhile, National University easily booked its spot in the quarterfinals after getting a win over Mapua via forfeiture.
This rewarded the Bulldogs their sixth win to stay atop Group A.
On the other hand, the Cardinals fell to 0-6 as only six players showed up.
The scores:
FEU 90 - Sajonia 20, Sandagon 13, Torres 12, Tempra 11, Gonzales 10, Sleat 7, Gravera 5, Bagunu 5, Alforque 4, Ona 3, Tchuente 0, Guibao 0, Montemayor 0.
UST 79 - Baclaan 19, Concepcion 13, Cabanero 9, Mantua 8, Herrera 8, Lazarte 6, Garing 6, Santos 5, M. Pangilinan 5, Crisostomo 0, Escobido 0.
Quarterscores: 27-18; 43-37; 63-60; 90-79.
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