A WIN away from returning to the league’s biggest stage, University of the Philippines cannot afford to be complacent despite being the overwhelming favorites against La Salle in the UAAP men’s basketball Final Four.

Goldwin Monteverde may have already sounded like a broken record, but the first-year coach simply wanted his Fighting Maroons to elevate their level of play in the 2 p.m. duel with the Green Archers.

“Even though we already knew we had the twice-to-beat advantage, but I’ve been consistent since the start of the season that we’re always still looking for improvement,” said Monteverde after UP ended Ateneo’s remarkable 39-game winning streak last Sunday.

“We’ve been really doing our best defensively and offensively. Whatever we did in these last two games, we really gained a lot from it.”

Finishing the elimination round in second place with a 12-2 record, the Maroons needed only to win once to secure their second Finals appearance in three seasons – and possibly face the Eagles again for the crown.

Setting aside its tough 83-84 loss to UP, four-peat seeking Ateneo hopes to get the job done against No. 4 Far Eastern University in the other Final Four pairing at 6 p.m. The primetime game will be aired live on TV5.

Victories by the Maroons and the Eagles will set up the best-of-three title series immediately on Friday.

UP hopes that CJ Cansino, who according to basketball program director Bo Perasol yesterday said that he had bone bruising and minimal and manageable swelling on the knee after getting hurt against Ateneo, will suit up in the Final Four.

“He is able to do some movement drills and we will check again later in practice. His ability to practice or play will be decided upon by our medical team and coaching staff. We are still awaiting the official reading of the MRI,” said Perasol, who steered the Maroons to a Finals stint in 2018.

Still, UP has a lot of weapons in its disposal, with Senegal’s Malick Diouf and Carl Tamayo taking charge in the middle, and Zavier Lucero, Ricci Rivero, Joel Cagulangan and James Spencer delivering when the going gets tough.

“I’m very proud of this team because we didn’t have many big wins. A lot of these were close games like this one, and our trust with each other never seemed to waver. Hopefully, we carry this over to the semis,” said Monteverde.

Making its first Final Four appearance since 2017 after finishing third at 9-5, the Archers needed a play their A-game if they wanted to finally conquer the Maroons and live another day. La Salle has lost its last six meetings with UP.

With injured stars Justine Baltazar (ankle sprain) and Schonny Winston (back spasms) not in 100 percent form, Archers coach Derrick Pumaren is counting on his other players to overcome the twice-to-beat disadvantage.

Joaqui Manuel, who had a career-high 20 points in La Salle’s 76-65 win over National University, Mike Phillips, Evan Nelle, Kurt Lojera and Mark Nonoy hope to deliver.

“We will need everybody on board,” said Pumaren, who on his second stint with the Archers has assured the team of a top three finish this season. “For us to make it all the way and to have a good showing in the playoffs, it has to be a total team effort.”

“We cannot just be relying on one, two guys. Everybody should be able to contribute, whether they’re playing two, three minutes, or 20 minutes. Everybody must contribute to bring us to the next round,” he added.

Games today

(Mall of Asia Arena)
2 p.m. – UP vs DLSU
6 p.m. – Ateneo vs FEU