Win or go home for Adamson, UE

Adamson University has clawed its way into a position for a shot at the last Final Four seat in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) Season 87 men’s basketball tournament.

Taking the long and winding road to force a playoff for the No. 4 spot against skidding University of the East, the Falcons are throwing everything they have to walk out of the Mall of Asia Arena today with the all-important win.

“Labas pato na lahat. No holding back,” Adamson head coach Nash Racela said of the no-tomorrow match tipping off at 6:30 p.m.

The Falcons tied the Red Warriors with identical 6-8 win-loss records at the end of eliminations.

Adamson fought the also-ran and cellar-dweller Ateneo de Manila University tooth and nail before scoring a 69-55 victory last Saturday to stay in the hunt for the last spot in the Final Four cast.

This is not the first time the Falcons got tangled in a sudden death for a semis seat. In fact, Adamson is in an all-familiar situation for a third straight season.

The Falcons knocked out De La Salle University in a playoff in Season 85 but fell short the following edition at the hands of the Blue Eagles.

Racela, however, doesn’t want his team to dwell on past results. What matters now is making the most of the opportunity presented to his squad.

“When you get into the playoffs you get into a knockout game, what happened in the past won’t matter,” he said.

“I always tell them that there will be no repeat of what happened last season. It will be a totally different ball game. So, you don’t really know what to expect. We just have to do and accomplish our job,” Racela added.

Adamson and UE split their elims head-to-head with the Red Warriors winning by a hair, 63-62, off a game-winner by Wello Lingolingo in the first round before the Falcons got even in a low-scoring 45-37 decision in the rematch.

The teams face off for a third time this season with the winner moving on to the next round to challenge the twice-to-beat defending champion Green Archers.

Momentum is on the side of the Falcons after winning three of their last four games in the elims.

But Adamson will play without graduating player Jhon Calisay due to a one-game ban following his ejection in the second quarter against Ateneo after incurring two technical fouls.

Racela will rely on Cedrick Manzano, Royce Mantua, Manu Anabo, Joshua Yerro and Matt Erolon to save the Falcons’ season.

On the other hand, UE for the sixth and final time will try to end a 15-year semis drought.

The Red Warriors ended their elims campaign with a disappointing five-game losing skid as they squandered their multiple chances of securing the elusive outright Final Four entry.