Beanpole Don Yabut split his charities with no time remaining in overtime as the Far Eastern University Tamaraws survived the stubborn National University Bulldogs, 86-85, Saturday at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.

Yabut’s deciding freethrow was an unlikely ending in a highly-charged match that saw numerous disqualifications and injuries on key players.

“It was a miracle. Denok [Miranda] was sidelined in the third quarter while halos lahat na ata ng players ko na-foul trouble. Hindi ko alam kung anong tumama sa amin,” said FEU coach Koy Banal.

Led by big men Rey Mendoza and Edwin Asoro, the Bulldogs surprised the Tamaraws with their outside sniping and gang rebounding to post an early 17-5 lead midway in the first quarter.

But disaster struck the NU camp in the second canto as head coach Rico Perez was forced to exit the game following a dispute with a referee. The defending champions wisely used this as a rally point as Denok Miranda and Arwind Santos combined for nine straight markers even as Ryan Rizada inched in two freebies to trim the deficit to just three points, 42-45, entering the second half.

Miranda’s five straight points at the 6:08 mark of the third gave the Morayta-based cagers the lead for the first time, 50-49, The Bulldogs would play catch-up the rest of the way as Jeffrey Chan and Santos kept the Tams afloat, 75-69, with 1:16 left in the fourth.

Rookie hotshot Jonathan Fernandez sparked a 7-1 blast as he scored seven straight points, including the two charities that tied the knot at the end of regulation, 76-all.

The extra session was ruled by both Santos and Mendoza as the they traded big baskets down the stretch. Santos had seven of his 28 points in that stretch while Mendoza banged in nine of his 28 markers, although he missed both his freethrows in the dying seconds that could’ve given them their first win of the season.

Yabut pulled down the carom off Mendoza’s miss but a Bulldog was called for a reach-in foul that drew howls of protests from the NU side,

Yabut effortlessly made the first one but his second did not fall in. Nonetheless, the Tamaraws outlived the Bulldogs and maintained solo second place behind the pace-setting Ateneo Blue Eagles, despite losing most of their marquee players due to foul trouble.

Mark Isip, Rizada, and Santos all fouled out while Miranda suffered an undetermined injury in the third period.

Santos, last year’s Finals MVP, also grabbed 15 boards, 10 coming off the offensive end. Miranda had 17 points and five assists.

On the other hand, Mendoza had 16 rebounds while Asoro contributed 13 points and nine boards,

They [the boys] have a big heart. Kahit sino matira sa amin alam kong makakaya namin. Everyone in the line-up this year is capable of stepping up,” Banal added.