Games today:

(Smart Araneta Coliseum)

2 p.m. — La Salle vs NU (m)

4 p.m. — NU vs FEU (w)

National University (NU) skipper Bella Belen is not looking forward to a do-or-die game with Far Eastern University (FEU) as the University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 86 women’s volleyball tournament Final Four erupts Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

“When you hear the twice-to-beat (advantage), it makes the players feel good. But we shouldn’t come to a point where we have to use the twice-to-beat advantage,” Belen said.

Not only is a sudden-death match exhausting but it is extremely dangerous for the higher seeded squad.

“It’s such a good thing to hear for the players, that it feels good knowing that we are twice-to-beat because we are given some kind of support, but we won’t let it go to that point,” added Belen, stressing the unpredictability of a do-or-die match.

So when the Lady Bulldogs troop to the court at 4 p.m. aiming for a third straight championship stint, Belen and company would be there treating it as if it is a knockout game.

Before the main event, NU and De La Salle University vie for the last last twice-to-beat incentive in men’s play.

For the Lady Bulldogs, their 25-21, 25-19, 25-22, win over the Lady Tamaraws last 24 April is not an excuse to slack off as they focus on using their twice-to-beat protection wisely in their Final Four campaign.

Belen finished with 12 points from 12 attacks against FEU as the Lady Bulldogs finished the second round of the elimination phase with a 12-2 win-loss record.

On the other hand, Faida Bakanke’s 14-point performance from 10 attacks, three blocks, and a block against the Lady Bulldogs is a testament that she is easing into FEU’s system better as the collegiate volleyball wars get going.

FEU is 0-2 to NU in their elimination round head-to-head but the Final Four is an entirely different story.

For head coach Manolo Refugia, the long break before the Final Four will help the Lady Tamaraws thoroughly work on their chemistry.

“I think we’ll focus on the first game. We’ll pour out all our focus in the first game. With the belief that we can do it, we need to have patience we have for each other so that we can give our best,” Refugia said.

FEU last made it to the Final Four in 2019, pushing eventual champion Ateneo de Manila University to a do-or-die match before losing.

The other Final Four duel pits traditional rivals University of Santo Tomas (UST) and La Salle which is set Sunday night at the Mall of Asia Arena.

The Tigresses also have a 12-2 record, but with the inferior points against the Lady Bulldogs, 34-36, in the first tiebreaker, the coach Kungfu Reyes-led squad settled for the second spot.

The Lady Spikers’ bid for their 13th title is in peril after ending up in third place in the eliminations with an 11-3 slate.

UST secured the twice-to-beat bonus after beating La Salle, 22-25, 25-23, 25-16, 25-15, on the final day of eliminations last 27 April.