Fighting Maroons down Falcons, nail Final Four ticket

University of the Philippines (UP) finally clinched a Final Four slot after a 70-59 win over Adamson University Sunday in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 87 men’s basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena.

With only a 58-57 lead with 3:33 left in the fourth quarter, the Fighting Maroons unleashed a 12-0 run, capped by a thunderous dunk by Quentin Millora-Brown at the one-minute mark of the game, to finish off the Falcons.

So far, UP and defending champion De La Salle University are the only teams in the league to clinch a spot in the semifinals.

For Maroons assistant coach Christian Luanzon, it was about looking at the situation and adapting to it.

“Just to have better reads on the floor. The plays are there, it’s just for them to read it and execute it,” Luanzon said.

“These are small details that coaches talk about. It’s up to them how they will execute those details.”

“It’s always about the next possession for us. This is a semifinal-clinching game. We’re going to celebrate this but at the same time, the big picture is us trying to make it to the finals.”

JD Cagulangan was on fire, scoring 17 points behind a 7-of-11 shooting from the field while Gani Steven scored 10 points for UP as they now hold an 8-1 win-loss record.