Games Wednesday:

(Smart Araneta Coliseum)

1:30 p.m. — UST vs FEU

4:30 p.m. — Ateneo vs La Salle

University of Santo Tomas (UST) clinched the third Final Four seat after taming National University (NU), 80-71, for its third straight win in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 88 men’s basketball tournament on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

The Tigers used a scorching 18-3 run bridging the third and fourth quarters to pull away from the Bulldogs on their way to improving to an 8-5 win-loss record.

Trailing 48-52 with under four minutes left in the third quarter, Gelo Crisostomo, Mark Llemit and Kyle Paranada anchored UST’s decisive assault to build a 66-55 lead with 8:36 left in the game.

Forthsky Padrigao’s basket gave the Tigers their biggest gap, 78-65, with 4:08 left before staving off the Bulldogs the rest of the way.

Crisostomo had 13 points, Llemit, Amiel Acido and Collins Akowe finished with 11 points each for UST, which will close the elimination round on Wednesday against Far Eastern University (FEU).

Despite seeing its five-game winning streak snapped for an 11-3 card, NU will advance into the next round as the top seed armed with a twice-to-beat advantage against the No. 4 squad.   

Omar John led the Bulldogs with 12 points and 11 rebounds, Nat Talabut got 10 points while Jake Figueroa was limited to just three points on 1-of-6 field goal shooting in more than 20 minutes of action.  

Meanwhile, Ateneo de Manila University knocked out Adamson University in the Final Four race after a 72-61 victory to bolster their bid to advance into the next round.

A 27-15 second-quarter salvo opened a huge separation for the Blue Eagles, who extended their gap to 26 points in the third period.

Although scoring only seven points in the final canto, Ateneo has built enough cushion on its way to improving to a 6-7 card tied with idle FEU.

“Adamson has shown all year long what a tough team they are to put away. They’ve had some of the more remarkable comeback wins and we know they’re capable of taking a knockout punch and getting up somehow,” Blue Eagles head coach Tab Baldwin said.

“I give credit to our team for hanging on in this one and making the plays down the stretch that it took.”    

Dom Escobar finished with 14 points, Kymani Ladi and Waki Espina had 13 each while Shawn Tuano scored 11 for the Blue Eagles.    

Ateneo posted its biggest lead at 65-39, with 1:23 left in the third off an Escobar basket. It was enough to compensate for the Blue Eagles’ spotty offense in the final canto.

Ateneo can force a playoff for a Final Four seat if it wins over De La Salle University (7-6) on Wednesday and end up with a favorable quotient in case of a 7-7 tie at No. 4.

Matt Erolon and Ray Torres’ 24 and 16 points, respectively, weren’t enough to save the Falcons from falling short of a semis return.

Adamson, which got swept by Ateneo in their elims head-to-head, closed its campaign with a 6-8 mark.

In his final game for Adamson, Cedrick Manzano recorded seven points, 11 rebounds, five assists, and three blocks. Austin and Cade Ronzone also played their last game for the Falcons.