Games today:

(Filoil EcoOil Centre)

12 p.m. — Lyceum vs JRU

2:30 p.m. — Saint Benilde vs Letran

College of Saint Benilde will not only be gunning for a seventh straight win when it goes up against a struggling Letran College side Friday but attempt boost its semifinal billing as well in Season 100 of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) men’s basketball tournament at the Filoil EcoOil Centre.

Game time is at 2:30 p.m. and the Final Four-bound Blazers, who are currently on top 12-2 win-loss, hope to get another win to enhance their chance of clinching a twice-to-beat advantage after narrowly escaping University of Perpetual Help System Dalta, 61-56, last 30 October.

Meanwhile, the Knights are in a three-way tie with host Lyceum of the Philippines University and Emilio Aguinaldo College (EAC) in fourth place with identical 7-8 records.

The last time both squads faced off, Letran got the last laugh thanks to a clutch shot from Kevin Santos for a 71-69 win over Saint Benilde last 23 September.

The Knights are also one of the two teams in the NCAA, aside from Arellano University, to get a win over the Blazers, who are considered favorites to win the title.

Despite their impressive run and Letran winning one of its six games in the second round, Saint Benilde head coach Charles Tiu isn’t taking this match lightly.

Tiu said they can’t afford to be complacent against the Knights, who are expected to showcase its aggressiveness from start to finish.

“We treat them the same way: With a lot of respect. They’re struggling and desperate to win right now and they need this game badly,” Tiu said.

“They have our number as they beat us the last time so we have to play better.”

Tiu also said veteran guard Tony Ynot is looking uncertain after a nagging ankle injury in practice.

“Tony hasn’t practiced in the last two days. He tweaked his ankle again,” Tiu said.

Despite this, the Blazers will have a lot of veterans to lean on in the form of Justine Sanchez, who scored 16 points against Perpetual, and big man Allen Liwag, who is one of the favorites to win the Most Valuable Player award with an average of 13.86 points and 10.86 rebounds in 14 games.

Meanwhile, Letran head coach Allen Ricardo hopes the extra days off gave them clarity on what they should need to improve on as they try to boost their Final Four hopes.

“We need to pause for a moment and try to redeem ourselves. We had a lot of mistakes and basketball is a game that requires the least amount of mistakes to win,” Ricardo said.

“They should realize they need to step up when guys like Deo (Cuajao) and (Jimboy) Estrada get shut down.”

Estrada and Cuajao will try to bounce back after being held to just 10 and six points, respectively, in their 58-68 defeat against EAC last 30 October.

Lyceum will also try to boost its Final Four bid when it goes up against Jose Rizal University at 12 p.m.

Pirates head coach Gilbert Malabanan said they will put their focus on the Heavy Bombers and not worry about their future games that could affect their chances of making it back to the semifinals.

“We’ll take it one game at a time and focus on whoever is in front of us,” Malabanan said.