Bulldogs were able to stop the curse of losing but at the expense of the Tamaraws who played a nail-biting match until the end of the third quarter.

The two teams contested to extend the lead during the first half but FEU claimed the nine points lead after the third frame with the star rookie RJ Abarrientos exploding with a career-high 33 points.

However, the Tamaraws failed to meet ends with Abarrientos as the Bulldogs retaliated in the last quarter with John Lloyd Clemente stepping up with 18 points.

“At least ‘yong veterans nag-step up. ‘Yong team namin, saluhan. Kapag naiwan ‘yong isa, itatayo namin,” NU head coach Jeff Napa said on the performance of his team.

With Abarrientos seeming to be out of control, Shaun Ildefonso who marked 13 points for the team shared how the Bulldogs strategized to pin him down that would have a domino effect on FEU.

“We told each other that RJ has scored too much. The kid can really play. But we noticed that once we shut him down, the momentum will shift on our side. We really defended him until the end of the game,” Ildefonso said.

But FEU was drained by the relentless efforts of the Bulldogs to make a comeback as Michael Malonzo got the rebound to box out for two, 70-66 at the 38 seconds mark.

FEU lost hope as Abarrientos’ attempt on three fell short followed by Lj Gonzales’ two under the basket yet NU answered with a win, 73-68.

The Scores: 

NU 73 – Clemente 18, Malonzo 14, Ildefonso 13, Minerva 9, Felicilda 7, Figueroa 5, Joson 4, Galinato 2, Tibayan 1, Gaye 0, Enriquez 0, Yu 0, Torres 0, Manansala 0, Mahinay 0. 

FEU 68 – Abarrientos 33, Alforque 13, Gonzales 9, Bienes 4, Tempra 4, Ojuola 3, Sajonia 2, Torres 0, Coquia 0, Sleat 0, Li 0, Sandagon 0, Celzo 0. 

Quarters: 14-18, 32-33, 49-58, 73-68.