Game Today(Smart Araneta Coliseum)11 a.m. – Adalem Construction-St. Clare vs. Builders Warehouse-UST
ADALEM Construction-St. Clare and Builders Warehouse-Santo Tomas go at it one last time in a win-or-go-home duel to dispute the last semifinal ticket in Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) D-League Aspirants’ Cup on Wednesday at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
Action kicks off at 11 a.m. with the survivor earning a right to face No. 2 and automatic semifinalist EcoOil-La Salle in the next round.
The other Final Four pairing is already set between No. 1 Apex Fuel-San Sebastian and No. 4 Marinerong Pilipino, which maximized its win-once bonus in the quarterfinals against Centro Escolar University.
St. Clare, as the third-seeded team, failed to make the most out of its simile twice-to-beat incentive following a 98-93 loss against sixth-ranked but rampaging Santo Tomas.
The Saints, five-time champions of the National Athletic Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities (NAASCU), aim to get the job done this time with Joshua Fontanilla, John Rojas and NAASCU most valuable player Johnsherick Estrada spearheading the way.
The Growling Tigers are readily waiting for that fightback brimming with confidence and momentum from a scorching four-game run after a flat 0-4 start to make the playoff cut.
Tasked to lead Santo Tomas in completing the upset of St. Clare on the way to the semis is Cignal Play-PBA Press Corps Player of the Week Kean Baclaan with leader Sherwin Concepcion. — John Bryan Ulanday