UST, La Salle continue dispute for last semis slot

Santo Tomas and La Salle, two teams that used to dispute the UAAP seniors basketball title in the 1990s, now find themselves locked in a battle for the least prestigious place in the playoffs – the No. 4 spot. The Tigers are ranked fourth with a 6-7 win-loss card behind qualifiers Ateneo (12-1), FEU (11-2) and UE (9-4) while the Green Archers occupy a close fifth with 5-8 with still a game left in their respective elimination schedules. UST faces the UE Red Warriors on Thursday at 4 p.m. seeking the elusive win that serve as the España-based team’s ticket to the semis. The Green Archers, though, can still force a playoff for that remaining Final Four slot should they win over National U at 2 p.m. Thursday and the Tigers bow to the Warriors. Despite back-to-back losses to La Salle (68-64 in overtime) and Adamson (83-64) that stymied their advance and gave the Green Archers a chance to dislodge them from the semis via the backdoor, Tigers coach Pido Jarencio is not in panic mode. “Bagsak ang morale namin pagkatapos namin matalo sa La Salle (last Thursday). Noong Sunday, napakaswerte naman ng Adamson. Pero past is past. Kailangan lang namin mabalik ‘yung dati naming laro na may cohesiveness kami, tumatakbo at nagtutulungan," Jarencio said. But the Tigers face a tall order against the No. 3 Red Warriors, who are on a roll with five consecutive wins and determined to go all the way to the Promised Land this year. “We still have to win five more games to win the title. That’s really our goal right now," said UE coach Lawrence Chongson, whose wards also hope to avenge their 88-92 loss to the Tigers in the first round. As for La Salle, coach Franz Pumaren and his rookie-laden squad can beat the cellar-dwelling NU Bulldogs (2-11) as bad as they want but it will all just go to waste if the Tigers prevail over the Warriors on their end. “Right now, it’s still not within our hands. It could have been better if everything fell into place but right now, we are still depending on other teams," said Pumaren, seeking to avoid getting shut out of the Final Four for the first time since the format was instituted in 1994. In case UST and La Salle, the protagonists in the finals from 1994-96, end up tied with 6-8 cards after the elims, they will figure in a KO match for the last semis seat on Thursday.- GMANews.TV