UNIVERSITY of the Philippines is bracing for a big Ateneo fightback when the fierce Katipunan rivals meet for a second Sunday in a row in the UAAP men’s basketball tournament.

The back-to-back title seeking Blue Eagles prevailed over the Fighting Maroons in overtime, 99-89, in their first meeting since the Game 3 of the Season 85 championship last Sunday.

Ateneo, however, opened its second round campaign on the wrong foot with a 59-62 defeat to Far Eastern University last Wednesday on a Ljay Gonzales improbable three-pointer at the buzzer.

The Blue Eagles were swept by the Tamaraws in their elimination round head-to-head and slipped to a 4-4 record in fourth place.

UP rediscovered its winning form with a 77-51 dismantling of Adamson to remain level with National University on top with a 7-1 slate.

The Fighting Maroons know that their struggling foes will definitely enter the 6 p.m. Sunday match-up at the Smart Araneta Coliseum with a sense of urgency.

“It’s gonna be a tough game for sure. We have to clean up a lot of things na we thought we should have done better noong kalaban sila (Ateneo), specifically on defense,” said Christian Luanzon, UP coach Goldwin Monteverde’s ever-trusted first assistant.

“So it should be a good one, as long as players come out to play.”

Rookie Francis Lopez stressed the need for the Fighting Maroons to outwork and outhustle the Blue Eagles if they want to avenge their first round defeat that ended a perfect 6-0 start.

“I think, coming off a loss to them, you know, that’s really tough. But, you know, they are coming for us, we are coming for them. We just have to be more prepared about it. We are just ready for whatever happens,” said Lopez.

“I think we just have to be prepared mentally and physically about the game on Sunday.”

For coach Tab Baldwin, the loss will help Ateneo as the season enters its crucial phase, especially since it has already been beaten by FEU twice this season.

“The only thing I have to say about the endgame is L-Jay, twice now against us, has shown a veteran’s composure that we haven’t been able to show in these situations,” Baldwin said.

“We will obviously individually learn from those scenarios, but they’re not things that we will dwell on. I would much rather dwell on the fact that we weren’t competitive enough. If we have any hopes to have a respectable season this year, those are things we need to address,” he added.

The scores:

UP (77) – Torres 12, Diouf 12, Lopez 11, Alarcon 9, Torculas 7, Felicilda 7, Gonzales 7, Briones 3, Belmonte 3, Cansino 3, Abadiano 2, Alter 1, Cagulangan 0, Gagate 0, Pablo 0.
AdU (51) – Yerro 7, Ramos 7, Montebon 6, Ojarikre 6, Calisay 6, Canete 4, Lastimosa 3, Manzano 3, Anabo 3, Magbuhos 2, Colonia 2, Sabandal 2, Erolon 0, Barcelona 0, Hanapi 0, Barasi 0.
Quarterscores: 17-11, 40-20, 58-38, 77-51