FEU routs UP (5:30 p.m.)

MANILA – Far Eastern University (FEU) became merciless in the second quarter and never looked back as it trampled the winless University of the Philippines, 70-48, in the 73rd University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP).

At the Araneta Coliseum on Sunday, the Tamaraws wasted no time to deal the Maroons’ 13th straight loss in the tournament by posting a 17-0 spurt in the last minutes of the first half, 24-8.

FEU’s star line-up overcame a sluggish first canto with top Most Valuable Player contender RR Garcia, Smart Gilas member JR Cawaling, Mark Bringas and Cameroonian discovery Pippou Noundou tallied 17 of the Tamaraws’ 28 markers.

It was all FEU down the stretch with Garcia burying a triple with 50 ticks left in the payoff period to pull away at 68-43, with UP managing to wrest the lead only in the first quarter, 8-7.

In a game that seemed a warm-up for FEU’s anticipated tiff against Ateneo on September 11, sixth year mentor Glenn Capacio however scored his players for a sub-par performance in terms of ball movement.

“I realized that it’s actually hard to win a non-bearing game because I have players who are candidates for MVP and rookie of the year. There’s a tendency for them to just score for themselves," the coach said.

"I told them that we should play as a team because individualism will only ruin our game against Ateneo next week,” he added as FEU enjoys a twice-to-beat bonus going into the Final Four.

But even with the slight error, Capacio still credited his wards for a job well-done.

“I am glad that the second stringers stepped up for this game. It’s a good reminder to all members that we always have to play as a team,” he said.

UP solely relied on the efforts of its five players, led by Alvin Padilla with 17 points, three rebounds plus a pair of assists and steals while bigman Magi Sison and co-skipper Martin Reyes contributed 14 and nine markers, respectively.

Garcia topscored for the Tamaraws with 12 points in 25 minutes of play. Reil Cervantes chipped in nine while rookie Gryann Mendoza had a career-high eight points.

FEU improved to league-best 11-2 (win-loss) card. (Virgil Lopez/Sunnex)