UAAP: Archers, Tigers collide

Photo by Celest R. Flores

MANILA—University of Santo Tomas and La Salle—two teams in the middle of the pack—try to end their first-round campaigns on a bright note when they collide Thursday  in the 74th UAAP men’s basketball tournament.

Both toting 3-3 records, the Tigers and the Archers collide at 3 p.m. with the winner finishing in the Top Four at the close of the opening round at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Adamson’s experienced lineup will once again be put to the test against University of the Philippines in the curtain-raiser at 1 p.m.

The Falcons are running second behind the 7-0 Ateneo Eagles with a 4-2 record and another win will solidify their hold of that spot.

Providing an interesting subplot in the Tigers-Archers clash is the duel between the league’s most exciting playmakers in La Salle’s LA Revilla and UST’s Jeric Fortuna.

Fortuna, who is averaging 15.5 points in the first six games, has been hailed by coach Pido Jarencio as one of the main reasons why the Tigers improved from last year’s start.

“He’s the foundation of this team,” Jarencio said of his prized guard, who led the Tigers to a 68-49 trouncing of UP last Sunday.

The win against the Fighting Maroons ended a three-game slide for the Tigers.

“We expect to finish the first round at 4-3,” said Jarencio.

Returning from a two-year absence because of diabetes and hypothyroidism, Revilla has assumed the role as leader for the Archers, averaging 13.3 points this season.

But he was held to just three points in the Archers’ 58-66 loss to the Falcons the last time out.

Though they are heavily favored with their stacked roster, Adamson coach Leo Austria remains wary of the Fighting Maroons, who pulled off a 76-63 upset of last year’s runner up Far Eastern U last Thursday.

“UP is very dangerous because they have nothing to lose,” said Austria. “I don’t want to be beaten by a team from the bottom.”

Regardless of the result of their duel against the Fighting Maroons, the Falcons will still finish as the No. 2 team after the first round because they have won their matches against FEU, La Salle and UST.

The winner of the Archers-Tigers duel will play Adamson at the start of the second round. Ateneo which swept the first round will face  third-running FEU for its first outing of the second round on Saturday.