FOURTH CRUSADE

Adamson keeps eye on open No. 4 slot; Ateneo prepares for late coming-out party

Matt Erolon (middle) and the Falcons understand that there are no favorites yet for the last playoff spot. —PHOTOS FROM UAAP MEDIA

By his reckoning, there will be a lot more to fight for among teams that normally occupy the bottom half of the standings.

It’s not a grand goal. But for Nash Racela, it will do—for now.

“Everybody talks about La Salle and UP (University of the Philippines) and maybe NU (National University),” the Adamson coach said. “That’s why in my mind, that fourth spot is really open for the rest of the [teams].”

The Falcons opened their chase for that fourth spot with a 59-47 victory over Far Eastern U in a match where they trailed early in the first half before pulling away against the young Tamaraws.

Adamson won’t have the luxury of slow starts now.

“I just hope La Salle settles down first,” Racela joked after his wards needed time to find their footing.

“We know that [the Green Archers] are tested in games so I’m sure you know how strong La Salle is.”

To those without a clue, La Salle opened its title defense with a 78-75 victory over NU, coming from seven points down in the closing minutes behind reigning MVP Kevin Quiambao.

Femi Edu (right) and the Eagles will try to find something to be happy about against the Tigers.

Same plan

Collecting wins early will go a long way in helping Adamson crash the Final Four and take it from there.

Racking up early wins is the same plan of Ateneo coach Tab Baldwin. The champion mentor believes he has a team that will eventually come together and match up with everyone—but only late in this season.

“The goal, obviously, is to be better quick enough to put wins on the board, because by the end of the season I think this team has a chance to be pretty good,” Baldwin said.

“But we’ve got to be in contention at the end of the season or else we’re looking further into the future,” he added.

Unlike the Falcons though, the Eagles will go into the match with no momentum at all after losing their opening match to the Maroons, 77-61—a game that saw the team lose captain Chris Koon to an ankle injury.

The Ateneo captain will most likely be missing the Eagles’ match against a revamped University of Santo Tomas led by former teammate and skipper Forth Padrigao.

“We know [the Growling Tigers] have some really good personnel. [Nic] Cabañero is one of the real class players in the league. Forthsky at the point presents problems. They’ve got some transfers coming in this year that are good basketball players. It’s going to test us,” Baldwin said.

Jared Bahay, a highly touted rookie out of Cebu who had a solid Ateneo with 13 points, five rebounds and four assists, will draw much of the spotlight anew.

The Tigers, meanwhile, are coming off a 70-55 rout of University of the East’s Warriors. INQ