MANILA, Philippines—Far Eastern University has held the No. 1 spot from opening day, but defending champion Ateneo can steal the top berth when they clash on the final playdate of the UAAP men’s basketball eliminations.
The Tamaraws and the Blue Eagles collide at 4 p.m. Saturday at the Araneta Coliseum.
“Of course, we still want to keep the top spot,” said coach Glenn Capacio, whose Tamaraws (11-2) and the Eagles (10-3) already claimed the twice-to-beat semifinal bonus.
As another incentive for topping the eliminations, the No. 1 team will take on the fourth-ranked squad in the Final Four.
The second seed will battle the No. 3 team in the other semifinal pairing.
It will take the Eagles a lot more to grab the No. 1 spot, however—even with a victory. Ateneo also needs to secure a higher quotient than FEU, according to league statisticians.
Ateneo grabs the No. 1 seeding if it wins by at least three points under the league’s tie-breaker—the quotient of total team points over total points allowed.
The Tamaraws and the Eagles are both aware, though, that going up against either La Salle or Adamson in the semifinals is a tough task.
“Either team is going to be difficult for us, so I’m just happy we got the twice-to-beat,” said Ateneo coach Norman Black.
“We’ve really had tough games against Adamson. Both games could have gone either way. We also lost to La Salle.”
The Green Archers and the Falcons, tied at 8-5, still have to dispute third spot at 4 p.m. tomorrow at the Big Dome.
“You can’t really choose,” said Capacio. “All the Final Four teams are strong, so our focus will be just to win our games.”
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