Far Eastern University finally secured its first win of UAAP Season 85 on Wednesday night, overwhelming the University of Santo Tomas, 75-60, at the Mall of Asia Arena.
In front of an appreciative crowd, the Tamaraws snapped a five-game losing streak to start their campaign -- their worst start to a season in the UAAP's Final 4 era. But against their traditional rivals, they finally broke through for a 1-5 win-loss slate.
A balanced effort got it done for the Tamaraws, as Bryan Sajonia went 9-of-9 from inside the arc to finish with a career-best 23 points. LJ Gonzales and Xyrus Torres each scored 17; the latter accounted for five of FEU's nine three-pointers.
"Everybody really showed up and played," said FEU coach Olsen Racela after the game. "I'm proud of his team dahil talagang they never gave up. Hopefully, it helps us, especially with our morale. Iba rin 'yung makuha 'yung unang panalo namin."
The Tamaraws pulled away for good in the third period, where they limited the Growling Tigers to just nine points. The lead would grow to 17 points, 75-58, after Torres drilled his fifth triple of the ball game with 49.4 seconds left.
This was FEU's first win since a 109-65 rout of the Growling Tigers last May 1 -- the last game of the UAAP Season 84 elimination round.
Nic Cabanero had 20 points on 7-of-18 shooting for the Growling Tigers. He also had five rebounds and five assists, but no other UST player reached double-digits. As a team, they shot just 26.4% from the field.
It did not help that the Tigers were without center Adama Faye, who served a one-game suspension after being ejected in their previous contest against the University of the East.
UST has now lost five straight games since a season-opening win against host Adamson University.
