UV, USC clash for first Cesafi men’s basketball finals berth

Games Thursday:
Cebu Coliseum
5 p.m. – SWU vs USJ-R
6:30 p.m. – UV vs USC

THE UNIVERSITY of San Carlos (USC) Warriors and the University of the Visayas (UV) Green Lancers will both try to make it back to a place they’re most familiar with as they dispute the first finals berth in the 15th Cesafi men’s basketball tournament today at the Cebu Coliseum.
Game time is at 6:45 p.m. in what is expected to be a blockbuster game full of excitement, intrigue and of course, intense physicality, the tone of which was set at the start of the round-robin semifinals on Tuesday, which saw one player get hospitalized, one get ejected and several more getting scrapes and bruises.
With each game bearing much weight, the winner of this match-up between the league’s best two teams will have a foot in the best-of-five finals series which kicks off this Tuesday.
The Green Lancers are coming off a hard-earned 87-77 win over the University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) Jaguars in a highly physical match-up that saw the latter’s wingman Tricky Peromingan land in a hospital due to an abdominal muscle strain.
Though the men in green came away victorious, head coach Gary Cortes is looking for more fluidity from his wards.
“We need more teamwork. We also need to be more patient on offense,” said the former defensive stalwart of UV, who is credited with turning the team’s fortunes around.
Cortes’ points are sound, given the fact that UV held a 21-6 lead but suddenly forced up hurried shots that eventually led to USJ-R coming in close at several points of the game.
USC, on the other hand, blew away the reigning champions Southwestern University (SWU) Cobras, 85-66.
USJ-R and SWU will try to keep their hopes alive when they clash in the opening match at 5 p.m.