UAAP Season 87 basketball Finals schedule
December 11, Wednesday – Game 1 – Mall of Asia Arena
- 1pm — women’s awarding Ceremony
- 1:30pm – UST Growling Tigresses vs NU Lady Bulldogs
- 5pm – men’s awarding Ceremony
- 5:30pm –UP Fightings Maroons vs. La Salle Green Archers
Kevin Quiambao–MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
Both University of the Philippines (UP) and La Salle talked down Game 1 of their UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball tournament title duel like the result mattered less than what it did on paper.
“Game 1 doesn’t win a championship,” UP coach Goldwin Monteverde said after the Maroons’ 73-65 victory in Sunday’s series opener. “[Part of] the process [toward getting a championship] is to get the Game 1. And [we’ve done that] so we’ll just have to focus on what we need to improve in terms of [our] lapses [during] the game.”
“The only thing that I told the team [was] there’s a reason why this is a series: you don’t win a championship by winning one game, you need two games,” La Salle coach Topex Robinson said after the Archers lost to the Maroons for the first time since, coincidentally, Game 1 of their title bout last season.
Mike Phillips, right, and Kevin Quiambao look to lead the way for La Salle in Wednesday’s UAAP Finals Game 2.–MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines—A year ago, La Salle completed a UAAP Finals comeback against University of the Philippines after losing Game 1.
On Sunday, the Green Archers found themselves facing the same predicament against familiar rivals following a 73-65 loss in the UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball Finals opener.
However, to pull off another rally, La Salle will need immense belief, according to Mike Phillips.
La Salle coach Topex Robinson during Game 1 of the UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball Finals.–MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines—For coach Topex Robinson, preparing La Salle for Game 2 of the UAAP Season 87 Finals against University of the Philippines is like clockwork and keeping the team’s morale right where he wants it to be following a tough loss is the real challenge.
“The only thing I told the team [after the loss] was, this is the reason why this is a series,” said Robinson after the 73-65 loss in Game 1 on Sunday at Araneta Coliseum.
“The players in the dugout just reminded each other to be positive and try to learn from this experience. That’s a tough team that we played against. They’re one of the best so we just have to slug it out with them on Wednesday.”
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