After wrapping up the elimination round with an impressive six-game winning streak, the top-seeded Ateneo Blue Eagles now shoot for a sixth straight finals appearance when they face the Adamson Soaring Falcons in the Final Four of the UAAP Season 85 men’s basketball tournament on Wednesday, December 7, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Interestingly, the Blue Eagles, who are equipped with a twice-to-beat playoff bonus, are coming off a 66-61 win over the Soaring Falcons in their final game of the second round, where big men Kai Ballungay and Ange Kouame showed the way with twin double-double performances.
Look for Ballungay and Kouame to once again flex their muscles down low against the smaller Adamson frontline, while also getting outside firepower from guards Forthsky Padrigao, Dave Ildefonso, and BJ Andrade.
Also expect collective effort on the defensive end fromthe Blue Eagles as they try to limit King Falcon and reigning UAAP player of the week Jerom Lastimosa, who is fresh from a 22-point explosion in Adamson’s 80-76 do-or-die playoff win over the La Salle Green Archers last Sunday.
On the other side, the Soaring Falcons will need the likes of Joshua Yerro, AP Manlapaz, and Lenda Douanga, among others, to step up anew and help their star point guard Lastimosa carry the scoring cudgels in their bid to pull off an upset and drag the Blue Eagles to a rubber match on Sunday, December 11.
Game time is 6 pm.
