MANILA, Philippines -- The Adamson University Soaring Falcons endured plenty of heartbreaks in the first round of UAAP Season 84, but they are hopeful they can turn things around in the second round.

The Falcons are currently 1-6 in the tournament, but could have easily been 5-2 or even 6-1. Outside of their 78-47 defeat to defending champion Ateneo de Manila University, their five other losses came by an average margin of three points.

Perhaps most painful was a 66-65 setback to Far Eastern University (FEU), where they led, 65-63, with 20 seconds left off a Jerom Lastimosa triple -- only to give up the game-winning three-pointer to RJ Abarrientos with three seconds to play.

Against De La Salle University on Saturday, they squandered a six-point lead in the fourth quarter and fell victim to a clutch triple from Evan Nelle in the final minute.

• READ: Abarrientos tows FEU past Adamson
• READ: La Salle escapes Adamson for win No. 5

"Siguro, nag-relax kami sa depensa namin. And, yeah, it twice happened kasi noong last two games. Ganoon din ang laro namin eh," lamented Lastimosa, who is leading Adamson in scoring with 14.43 points per contest.

"Parang hindi pa talaga namin naha-handle 'yung mga ganoong sitwasyon," the veteran point guard admitted. "We're still learning pa rin naman, sa mga ganoong crucial game."

As painful as those losses were, however, Adamson coach Nash Racela said they should also boost his players' confidence. While they faltered in the closing stretch, they still went blow-for-blow with the league's contenders for long stretches.

"We could have been 5-2, 'di ba? If you look at it that way, then that should give us motivation going into the second round. I think it's as simple as that," said Racela.

"It's nice that we put ourselves in a good position to win in the end. It's just a matter of really grabbing the victory," he added. "Lagi kong sinasabi sa kanila, the opponent will not give it to us."

"We have to learn how to take wins. And, we're hoping that of course going to the second round, it will be different."

Adamson will face off against FEU on Tuesday in a rematch of their thrilling first-round showdown.