Seven-footer Greg Slaughter of Ateneo and 6-10 Junmar Fajardo of UC will be the focus of attention in the 2 p.m. match where the Blue Eagles are favored owing to their solid lineup.
Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas president Manny V. Pangilinan will grace the opening ceremony at 1:30 p.m.
San Beda takes on San Sebastian in a rematch of the NCAA finals in the 4 p.m. second game of the blockbuster double-header.
The two teams with the best record in the round-robin Final Four will advance to the championship round, where the top seed will hold a twice-to-beat advantage.
NCAA Finals MVP Dave Marcelo will lead the Lions who, incidentally, figured in a brawl with the San Sebastian women’s volleyball team last Friday.
San Sebastian coach Topex Robinson—who is leaning on the trio of Ronald Pascual, Ian Sangalang and NCAA season MVP Calvin Abueva—said he hopes “cooler heads will prevail” in a battle expected to be heated.
Aside from Slaughter, Blue Eagles coach Norman Black will lean on Kiefer Ravena, Nico Salva and Emman Monfort who all played for the gold medal-winning national team in the recent 26th Southeast Asian Games.
“We have to do our best because we’re the only UAAP team left,” said Black.
Ateneo and San Beda earned outright Final Four berths in the tournament that gathers the best varsity teams nationwide.
San Sebastian clinched a semifinal slot after topping the Luzon-Metro Manila bracket of the stepladder Sweet 16, where the Stags last eliminated Letran, 83-76, in Ormoc City.
University of Cebu, the champions in the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc. (Cesafi), ruled the Visayas-Mindano leg at the expense of Southwestern University, 63-58, last week.