The Tigers, who fell at the bottom of the playoff staircase after the double-round elims, bumped off third-seeded FEU earlier this week with a huge 81-71 win to set up a gigantic duel with the Maroons. The road to the top for Santo Tomas, however, is only about to get tougher as it seeks to fight another day against UP, which is enjoying a hefty twice-to-beat advantage as the No. We just have to think of this game first and not the possible second game. The Maroons indeed are locked and loaded to land some measure vengeance on the Tigers coming from a 10-day break after ending their elims campaign with a tough 86-64 loss to outright finalist Ateneo. As painful as that loss was for the Maroons, they are still grateful enough to hold a win-once bonus against the conditioned Tigers in this stepladder semis.

Source: Philippine Star November 09, 2019 16:00 UTC