UST takes on Mapua, Perpetual tackles Letran in NGBL playoffs

Perpetual’s Lebron Jhames Daep and Letran’s Daniel Padilla will face off in the quarterfinals of the Next Generation Basketball League. Handout/NGBL

MANILA -- Perpetual Help and Letran will revisit their NCAA Season 99 Juniors Basketball Finals bout when the Next Generation Basketball League (NGBL) crossover, knock-out playoffs open this weekend.

The Junior Altas are the top-seeded team in Group A and will face off against the Squires -- the fourth seed in Group B -- in a one-game affair on Sunday morning at the Tanduay Gym in Manila.

Perpetual compiled a 7-0 record in the group phase, but head coach Joph Cleopas stressed that they are back to zero in the playoffs.

"I don't believe in being the top seed, or being number one or two. Anyone can beat anybody. We respect every opponent, kaya bigay todo kami palagi," he said. "I always tell them na anyone can beat us, kaya we should respect yung makakalaban namin."

READ: Despite early exit, eliminated teams relish NGBL experience

Meanwhile, Letran head tactician Willie Miller is banking on the lessons that his team learned in the elimination round as they target an upset.

"Parehas lang yan, five-on-five lang naman yan," said Miller. 

Opening Sunday's slate is the 10:00 a.m. game between Group A's No. 2 in National University-Nazareth School and Group B's No. 3, San Beda University.

UST’s Charles Bucsit and Mapua’s Carl Rodriguez will face off in the quarterfinals of the Next Generation Basketball League. Handout/NGBLMeanwhile, the University of Santo Tomas enters the playoffs as the No. 1 seed in Group B, putting them on a collision course against Group A's No. 4 team in Mapua. They face off on Saturday, 11:00 a.m. at the Aero Gym in Quezon City.

"Mas gusto ko yung ganito, dito kami matututo eh," said UST head coach Manu Iñigo after they split their last two elimination round games. 

"Yung composure nila, mai-build mula doon sa talo namin. Okay na yung ganito, as long as we play the right way, dyan kami natututo at nabubuo pa yung composure nila," he added.

University of the East takes on Far Eastern University-Diliman on Saturday at 12:30 p.m.

The winners of this weekend's quarterfinal games will advance into next week's NGBL Final Four, which will be another knockout affair as the race for the Php 300,000 champion's prize gets tighter.