NU faces FEU; winless UP, AdU may steal show

Games today

(Mall of Asia Arena)

2 p.m. – AdU vs UP

4 p.m. – NU vs FEU

MANILA, Philippines - National U seeks a roaring finish to its blazing first-round campaign today when it takes on dangerous Far Eastern U in the UAAP Season 77 men’s basketball tourney at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Unbeaten in their last three outings, the Bulldogs aim to wrap up their initial campaign with six wins against a lone loss and firm up their hold of the lead halfway through the tournament in their 4 p.m. match-up with the Tams (3-2).

Threatening to steal the limelight from the NU-FEU tussle is the battle of the cellar-dwellers – between Adamson (0-5) and coach Rey Madrid-less University of the Philippines (0-6) –  which blasts off at 2 p.m.

“We don’t really think about that (holding the lead after the first round). The UAAP is very unpredictable, games are won by close margins, except maybe for our (won) game against Adamson (62-25). We can’t really rest on our laurel. We have to play our A game every single day, every single game, we have to be consistent. Here in the UAAP, when you lose, sometimes you lose confidence, it can spiral down so it’s important you show up every game,” said NU coach Eric Altamirano.

“FEU is one of the strong teams this season, they’re playing well, they’re sharing the ball and they’re playing as a team, so we have to prepare well for FEU,” the NU coach said.

The Tams are raring to bounce back from their 78-81 loss to Ateneo last Sunday.

“We just need to learn to defend without fouling and play good for 40 minutes,” FEU mentor Nash Racela said, reflecting on the setback.

Racela asked for a huge effort from the Tams. ‘NU is a well-coached team and they have really good players. My observation is they’re playing more as a team now. What’s important for us is, if we want to win against NU, we need to be better than them, find ways to still improve.”

Meanwhile, the UP-AdU showdown is expected to get a “championship” atmosphere as they get the best chance to break into the win column. Maroons manager Dan Palami said a bonfire celebration will be held if UP snaps its harrowing 27-game losing streak tonight or in the future.

“The job is to break that streak and hopefully we’ll get our first win this Saturday,” said Palami.

AdU coach Kenneth Duremdes cautioned his young wards from getting pressured by the “hype.”

“Medyo yan ang inaabangan ng lahat ngayon. Sabi ko sa kanila, kung ano man ang hype niyan, wag lang tayo mawala sa focus natin, wag lang mawala sa ginagawa natin everyday (That’s the game everyone’s anticipating now. I told the guys, don’t let the hype take away your focus from what we’re trying to learn everyday),” he said.

The Maroons will agai miss Madrid, who’s serving the last of a two-game suspension slapped by Commissioner Andy Jao for his rants against officiating that “undermined the integrity of the commissioner’s office and the tournament.”