NUNS secures Final Four bonus

National University Nazareth School (NUNS) secured the top seed and the first twice-to-beat advantage in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 88 high school boys’ basketball tournament with a commanding 83-66 victory over De La Salle Zobel on Sunday morning at the Blue Eagle Gym in Quezon City.

In a preview of their Final Four matchup, the Bullpups relied on a dominant third-quarter surge, powered by Kurl Figueroa, Shaun Lucido, Rhon-j Matias, and Chad Cartel, to close the eliminations with 10 consecutive wins and clinch one of the coveted playoff incentives — extending the program’s twice-to-beat streak to three straight seasons.

Even if Far Eastern University-Diliman (FEU-D) (11-2) defeats Ateneo de Manila University (10-3) later in a high-stakes battle for the remaining twice-to-beat advantage at 12 p.m., NUNS will finish the eliminations as the top seed with a 12-2 record after holding the superior quotient over the Baby Tamaraws.

With both teams splitting their elimination-round matchups, NUNS claimed the top seed with a quotient of 0.857, edging FEU-D’s 0.846.

“We learned a lot in our 10-game winning streak because that’s where we realized that we can’t afford to relax,” NUNS head coach Kevin de Castro said.

“I think our composure and maturity in every practice and every game were tested. We need to work on it. We’re not thinking about our opponent. We just think of the problems that we need to solve.”

In the third quarter, a long two-pointer by Deron Llamas kept the Junior Archers within reach at 48-42, but the Bullpups exploded with a 22-2 run — capped by consecutive layups from Miekho Natinga, Cartel, and Figueroa — to enter the final period with a commanding 26-point lead, 70-44.

NUNS maintained control in the fourth quarter as a Figueroa mid-range jumper, a five-point burst from Sofiane Bouzina, and a Chester Tulabut layup kept DLSZ trailing 79-58 with 3:20 remaining.

Figueroa led the Bullpups with 14 points on 6-of-10 shooting and eight rebounds, while Corian Cabantog contributed 12 points on 3-of-5 shooting.

Rhon-j Matias recorded 10 points, three assists, two rebounds, and two steals, while Cartel added nine points on 4-of-5 shooting, six steals, three rebounds, and two assists. Lucido and Bouzina scored eight points each, while Mot Matias contributed four points, seven assists, and four rebounds.

For the Junior Archers, who will enter the Final Four as the fourth seed with an 8-6 record, star guard Maco Dabao struggled with 10 points on 3-of-12 shooting but added four steals, two assists, one rebound, and one block. Sherwin Reyes scored nine points, while Llamas and Jake Alpapara had seven points each.