DEFENDING champion De La Salle seeks to avenge its lone defeat of the season against red-hot University of the East in the UAAP Season 87 collegiate men’s basketball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Saturday.
Reigning MVP Kevin Quiambao is determined to make it up for the Green Archers’ shock 71-75 defeat to the Red Warriors.
The team had a players meeting after that setback and it worked wonders by winning three in a row by recommitting to coach Topex Robinson’s system.
De La Salle, which is coming off a 68-56 victory over University of the Philippines in a testy rematch of last season’s Finals, topped the first round with a 6-1 record.
“Sinabi lang namin — pressure is privilege, kumbaga outside noise lang iyan. Kumbaga, protektahan mo ‘yung inner circle ng team namin. Hayun, simula noong natalo kami sa UE, nag-stick lang kami sa system namin, I sacrificed my role as a veteran na hindi pala kailangan laging puntos, kailangang maging involved mga teammates ko,” Quiambao said.
“Simula noong nag-adjust kaming lahat, madaming good things ang nangyayari sa amin. Doon namin napagtanto na sundin lagi ang mga coaches kasi, ‘yung first four games namin medyo lihis ang system namin sa gusto naming gawin,” he added.
Tip time is at 6 p.m.
The Red Warriors are seeking to stretch their winning run to six games, which the Recto-based dribblers have last recorded during Season 72 (2009) when they won eight consecutive games to reach the Finals.
After opening the season at 0-2, UE won five in a row, the longest streak in 10 years, to enter the second round in third place.
For coach Jack Santiago, second round is a new chapter as the Red Warriors eye to end a 15-year Final Four drought.
“Hindi kami magre-relax. 0-0 pa rin come second round,” said Santiago.
Adamson University, which at 3-4 is one game behind University of Santo Tomas (4-3) in the race for the last Final Four berth, plays Far Eastern University at 4 p.m.
Second round action continues tomorrow at the Big Dome, with the Fighting Maroons and the Growling Tigers slugging it out at 6 p.m. National University and Ateneo meet again for the second straight week at 4 p.m.
The Bulldogs are in sixth place with a 2-5 record, while the Tamaraws and the Blue Eagles share the bottom at 1-6.
Enjoying its finest first round in 12 years, Adamson hopes to sustain its impressive first round showing in the women’s division in the 10 a.m. duel with FEU, while De La Salle and UE cross paths at 12 noon.
Games Saturday
(Smart Araneta Coliseum)
8 a.m. – Ateneo vs UPIS (JHS)
10 a.m. – AdU vs FEU (Women)
12 noon – DLSU vs UE (Women)
4 p.m. – AdU vs FEU (Men)
6 p.m. – DLSU vs UE (Men)
