UNIVERSITY of the Philippines goes for the jugular while Ateneo seeks to extend the UAAP Season 85 men's basketball finals when they meet on Wednesday.
Game Two shifts to Smart Araneta Coliseum with the Fighting Maroons faithful demanding a coronation while their Blue Eagle counterparts seeking to push this best-of-three series to the limit.
Things to know:
ONE AND ONLY
UP has a chance to accomplish a feat that has never been done before in league history: win two crowns in one calendar year.
The Maroons, who bagged the Season 84 title in May. go for the sweep of the Season 85 Finals after the 72-66 Game One win on Sunday.
GAME OF INCHES
Coaching has really been one of the focal points in the leadup to this series and it certainly matched the hype of the battle between Goldwin Monteverde and Tab Baldwin.
UP made the first bold move with Malick Diouf and Carl Tamayo coming off as subs and it paid dividends with the defending champions drawing 35 points from their bench.
It's up to Ateneo now to make that counter as Baldwin hopes to see a better execution from his wards after their 15 turnovers were turned to 10 easy points by UP.
BENCH PLAY
In a game as closely contested as this, sometimes the reserves really make the biggest difference.
Harold Alarcon came up big for UP, nailing two big treys in the last two minutes, while Henry Galinato, a surprise starter, was also solid for the Fighting Maroons.
Ateneo looks to overcome that, although Chris Koon seemingly hurting his right shoulder late in Game One of the UAAP Finals.
INDIVIDUAL AWARDS
Diouf will be crowned MVP, while also part of the Mythical Team will be his UP teammate Carl Tamayo and Ateneo guards Forthsky Padrigao and Dave Ildefonso.
Also part of the Mythical Five is University of the East's Luis Villegas, while La Salle's Kevin Quiambao will earn the Rookie of the Year honors.
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