UAAP: Falcons face Bulldogs; Tams battle Maroons

MANILA—Adamson tries to strengthen its hold of  second spot in the UAAP men’s basketball tournament when it tackles unpredictable National University Thursday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

With high-leaping guard Alex Nuyles again expected to get the job done, the Falcons are slightly favored in their quest for a seventh win in nine games against the Bulldogs in their 3 p.m. clash.

“We know we have a good a chance of making it to the Final Four, so everybody now is trying to beat us,” said Adamson coach Leo Austria. “But I’m happy to see my players stepping up and they’re maturing.”

In the earlier match, Far Eastern University aims to arrest an alarming three-game skid versus the University of the Philippines at 1 p.m.

The unexpected slide pushed the Tamaraws down to a share of third with idle La Salle and University of Santo Tomas at 4-4.

With a powerhouse lineup led by last season’s MVP RR Garcia, the Tamaraws are also hoping to avenge a 76-63 upset deal by the Maroons in the first round.

That loss to UP was followed by painful setbacks versus Ateneo at the end of the first-round, 69-49, and again at the start of the second round a week later, 74-67, in overtime.

Ranked near-bottom at 2-6, the Maroons also try to rise from a 77-70 defeat against the Tigers last Sunday.

Mike Silungan will again be at the UP helm, but the Filipino-American swingman hopes to translate his big numbers—19 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and five blocks against UST—into a win this time.

The Bulldogs similarly try to get strong performances anew from rookie Ray Parks and Emmanuel Mbe, the Cameroonian who had his best game yet of 21 points and 16 rebounds during their 91-51 drubbing of University of the East.

NU coach Eric Altamirano said his Bulldogs, running sixth at 3-5, are trying to shake off the pressure.

“[The expectations] gave the boys a lot of pressure coming into the season” said Altamirano. “These are young boys and I think they didn’t handle it well. Our mindset coming into the second round is just to play one game at a time.”