IT’S do-or-die on Wednesday in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 77 men’s basketball at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Top seed Ateneo de Manila and No. 2-ranked Far Eastern University (FEU) hope to get the job done after their failed attempts the last time and set up the best-of-three titular showdown.
The Blue Eagles first gun for the championship berth versus No. 4 seed National University (NU) at 2 p.m., then the Tamaraws clash with the defending champion De La Salle at 6 p.m.
Ateneo is still searching for answers on how to burst the bubble of the Bulldogs this season, as the Loyola-based school remains winless after three tries against NU, including a 74-78 loss in their Final Four encounter that negated their twice-to-beat advantage.
Blue Eagles Head Coach Bo Perasol said his players have moved on from that heartbreaking loss, but his team needs a collective effort to end the drought versus the Bulldogs.
“The team has never been focused and, at the same time, excited about the game tomorrow [Wednesday],” Perasol said. “We have no doubts that we can beat NU.”
Kiefer Ravena will be the main target of the Bulldogs’ defense as the soon-to-be-named Most Valuable Player is expected to come out with a big game, especially after a nine-of-35 shooting from the floor the last time out.
Ravena still finished with 22 points but was not able to deliver the clutch baskets when Ateneo made the fourth-quarter rally.
NU is looking to barge into the finals of the UAAP for the first time since 1970 before losing to University of the East in the finals and get the chance of ending a title drought. The last time the Bulldogs hoisted the UAAP trophy was in 1954.
NU mentor Eric Altamirano said they need another solid 40 minutes of basketball for them to beat the Blue Eagles.
“We expect Ateneo to come out really strong because this is a knockout match for both teams,” Altamirano said.
In the second Final Four KO encounter, FEU tries to recover from a humiliating 21-point loss to the Green Archers and stay on course for a crown.
Tamaraws Head Coach Nash Racela hopes to get a fair shake of the officiating in the do-or-die game as he thought his wards were not able to play good defense against La Salle because of how the game was called.
“Hopefully we could get equal chances in the knockout game. But the players are ready,” Racela said.
Green Archers mentor Juno Sauler said they need to bring the same intensity against FEU to make a return trip to the UAAP finals.
Joel Orellana