THE University of the East Warriors had another bad day yesterday the Mall of Asia Arena.
Two players went down with sprained feet in the fourth period and the Warriors missed easy baskets, allowing the Adamson Falcons to post a 66-57 win in the 80th University Athletic Association of the Philippines men’s basketball tournament.
Adamson claimed its sixth win in nine games, while UE has a 2-7 win-loss card.
Six offensive errors by the Warriors in the last three minutes, kept UE from lowering Adamson’s advantage below five points.
Nick Abanto put the Warriors within range, 54-59, with his drive in the last 5:52.
But things went bad for UE afterwards, as Abanto hurt his foot during another attack to the hoop.
Abanto left the court a few minutes after JC Cullar exited with a similar injury on a similar sprint for a quick basket.
Alvin Pasaol showed the way for the Warriors with 22 points, but the Falcons held him scoreless in the fourth period.
With Pasaol struggling with his game, the Falcons slowly pulled away as Sean Manganti’s trey and Jerick Ahanmisi’s sniping in the last 2:22 gave Adamson a 64-54 lead.
“Defensively, we did a terrific job. We just slowed down Pasaol a bit,” said Falcons’ coach Franz Pumaren on how they dealt with the Warriors, who are coached by his brother Derrick.
Games Saturday (Araneta Coliseum)
2 p.m. Adamson vs La Salle
4 p.m. FEU vs Ateneo