Adamson University took a late rally to secure the third spot at the expense of University of the Philippines, 86-70, Sunday in the UAAP Season 80 men’s basketball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
With the win, the Soaring Falcons lifted to a 9-4 card, while the Fighting Maroons fell to the fifth place with a 5-7 record, a game behind the Far Eastern University, who recently defeated University of the East to take on the fourth spot.
Adamson coach Franz Pumaren exclaimed his support for the squad after they exceeded their 8-6 record last season and are now a step closer to the title.
“Our mentality is Final Four mode already. During this stretch, every game is important and every game is a learning process for us and a learning experience for us,” said Pumaren.
The Soaring Falcons managed to pull away by the end of the first half and continued its way down to the third period, but the Fighting Maroons were able to cut down Adamson’s 21-point lead, 69-48, as Paul Desiderio led an 18-5 run to cut Adamson lead to just eight, 74-66.
However, Adamson answered back with a 12-0 run late in the fourth period to keep a comfortable 20-point cushion, 86-66.
“If you noticed it, during the time that we made a run, I didn’t call a timeout. For me, that’s one way of trusting my players and one way of making them feel that they should rise above the challenge,” Pumaren added.
Papi Sarr led Adamson with a double-double record of 25 points and 17 rebounds, while Jerie Pingoy added 15 markers, eight assists, six steals and zero turnovers.
Desiderio paced the Fighting Maroons with 20 points, while Jun Manzo added 15 markers.
Javi Gomez de Liano chipped in a 10 points and 10 boards double-double record in the losing effort.
