UE fights through slow start to defeat Adamson

MANILA, Philippines – After trailing for the entirety of the first half, the UE Red Warriors turned up the pressure on both sides of the floor in the second half and ran away with the victory over the Adamson Soaring Falcons, 72-59, on Sunday afternoon, August 24, at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City. 

Registering 20 points on 7-of-13 shooting, Pedrito Galanza finished as the best performer for the Red Warriors, which also received 12 points and 4 boards from Ronnie De Leon.

Roi Sumang had a disappointing 8 markers on 2-of-7 shooting, while Charles Mammie contributed 12 points and 10 rebounds for UE, which rebounded from their loss to the Ateneo Blue Eagles on Wednesday, August 20, and has won three of their last four games. 

The Red Warriors improve to 5-5, while the Soaring Falcons lost their 10th straight game and remain winless in Season 77 of the UAAP men’s basketball tournament. 

Celedonio Trollano registered 18 points and 10 rebounds to lead Adamson, while William Polican put up 9 and 7. 

“We still have a shot. We still have a chance,” UE head coach Derrick Pumaren said about his team’s ability to make the Final Four. “But we can’t play the way we played today,” he warned before saying “we have to kiss the season goodbye,” if the Red Warriors continue to play likewise to the way they did against AdU. 

“They didn’t play hard… They were taking Adamson for granted,” Pumaren continued. “With the position we have right now, we cannot take any teams lightly.” 

Pumaren, though, said that he was happy with the output of Galanza and De Leon, both of whom spearheaded UE in the game. 

“I was quite disappointed with the way Bong (Galanza) played against Ateneo. I expected him to be one of the guys we could count on against Ateneo.” 

“That’s the most important thing – how he bounced back (today against Adamson).”

After failing to hold the lead in any second of the first half, UE quickly came out guns ablaze in the third period, pulling off a quick 9-0 run thanks to the combined efforts of Mammie, Galanza, and Sumang.

Down by eight, Adamson did not fold and used quality ball movement on offense to get within striking distance, down by four, 50-46, entering the final period.

After an Ivan Villanueva layup over Mammie cut UE’s lead to two, the Red Warriors proceeded to go on an 8-2 run which was spearheaded by a tandem of 3-balls from Gino Jumao-as and Dan Alberto, 58-50.

With a little over one minute left in the game, Mammie converted a tough basket plus the foul that extended his club’s lead back to eight, and simultaneously drowned any chance for Adamson to put up a comeback. 

Moments later in the dying seconds of the contest, Mammie was left wide open on the break as he converted a two-handed slam that served as the dagger. 

UE gave up 18 turnovers but forced AdU to 17 of their own, leading to 15 points. UE’s bench, spearheaded by De Leon, was a main factor as well, outscoring Adamson’s 32-9. 

The Red Warriors were also dominant from the perimeter, with 37 points of their total output coming from jumpshots. However, they let the Soaring Falcons outrebound them, 47-41. 

University of the East will look to improve to 6-5 when they take on the NU Bulldogs on Sunday, August 31. The last time both clubs went head to head, it was the latter that came away with a two-point win. 

Galanza was on fire in the game’s early goings, recording his team’s first eight points thanks to two long-distance shots. However, Adamson, which went with a dual point guard lineup to start the contest, was the first squad to gain some ground. 

A Polican 3-ball with a little over five minutes left in the first period made the count 15-10 in favor of the Falcons, which hauled the game’s first five offensive rebounds despite the presence of Mammie. 

In the second quarter, turnovers started to catch up with Adamson who already had seven with five minutes left in the first half – five coming from offensive fouls.  

On the other side of the floor, De Leon caught fire for the Red Warriors, scoring eight of his team’s 10 points in a short span thanks to four perimeter jumpers. With three minutes left in the second period, the Soaring Falcons held on to a slim two-point lead, 28-26. 

At halftime, Adamson was ahead only by one, 34-33.

Scores

UE (72): Galanza 20, De Leon 12, Mammie 12, Jumao-as 9, Sumang 8, Arafat 4, Varilla 4, Alberto 3, Guiang 0, Javier 0, Olayon 0, Palma 0

ADU (59): Trollano 18, Ochea 12, Polican 9, Rios 9, Monteclaro 3, Butron 2, Garcia 2, Inigo 2, Villanueva 2, Aquino 0, Barrera 0, Baytan 0, Donahue 0, Gumtang 0, Nalos 0, Pedrosa 0 

Quarter Scores: 13-15, 33-34, 50-46, 72-59