UNIVERSITY of the East Fil-Am forward Ethan Galang wore jersey No. 0 but proved to be the Red Warriors’ hero against the Far Eastern University Tamaraws last night.

Bolstered by a vicious fourth quarter fightback, UE turned back FEU 56-51 for its breakthrough win in the 87th UAAP basketball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

With UE trailing by four with less than two minutes to go, Precious Momowei split his free throws before Galang knocked down a crucial three-pointer from the left elbow to knot the duel at 51-all with 1:16 left.

After the Tamaraws came up empty, the Warriors turned to Galang anew—and he delivered.

Galang worked his way to the same spot and banged in another triple, giving UE a 54-51 lead with 25 ticks remaining.

Warriors coach Jack Santiago lauded his team’s fortitude after it lost its first two games, counting a 71-81 setback to University of the Philippines five days ago.

“The boys responded very well. It’s so hard to play with a 0-2 record but I just gave some instructions to the boys that we should just stick together,” Santiago said. “Whatever happens inside the court, we will stick doon sa game plan.

“I’m happy that even we’re down, nandoon pa rin kami sa game plan namin,” he added.

Galang wound up with 10 points while Gjerard Wilson also had 10 markers, all in the second half, as UE improved to 2-1.

FEU, coming off a similarly close 60-62 defeat to Adamson University last Saturday, remained winless with a 0-3 slate.

The Tams shot themselves in the foot after a six-minute dry spell after Miguel Ona’s three-point play gave them a 42-32 edge with 2:21 left in the third quarter.

Wilson, Wello Lingolingo, and Rainier Maga combined in a 13-0 binge that gave the Warriors a 45-42 advantage with 6:14 remaining in the final stanza.

Jorick Bautista led FEU with 16 points while Veejay Pre added 13 markers, nine boards, and three steals.

Gambian big man Mo Konateh had six points, 17 rebounds, and three blocks for FEU.