UAAP squads Adamson University and the University of Santo Tomas arranged a championship showdown in the 2025 Asiabasket International Invitational after securing semifinal victories on Thursday at the Filoil EcoOil Centre in San Juan City.
The Soaring Falcons weathered a rally from the Letran Knights to come away with a 76-69 win. Meanwhile, the Growling Tigers cruised past the San Beda Red Lions, 82-68, to book their spot in the final.
The finals clash of UAAP squads is on Friday at 6:00 PM at the same venue.
Adamson led by as many as 12 points, 44-32, early in the third quarter before Letran stormed back behind the efforts of Jonathan Manalili, Kevin Santos, Luiz Tapenio, and Syrex Silorio. The Knights exploded for 26 points in the third period to grab a 55-54 lead heading into the final frame.
But rookie Earl Medina came up clutch for Adamson, dropping eight points in the fourth quarter before Mathew Montebon took over in crunch time to help seal the victory.
Medina and Montebon finished with 16 points apiece, each knocking down four triples. Montebon also tallied nine assists in an all-around performance.
Matty Erolon contributed 14 points, while Cedrick Manzano added 10 points, seven rebounds, and four assists for Adamson.
Meanwhile, UST never trailed in its dominant win over San Beda, with five Tigers scoring in double figures.
Rookie Koji Buenaflor was highly efficient, shooting 4-of-5 from the field and a perfect 5-of-5 from the free-throw line to finish with 14 points.
Gelo Crisostomo and Amiel Acido also chipped in 13 points each, with the former also grabbing 11 boards.
Mark Llemit and Collins Akowe added 11 points apiece, with Akowe also pulling down six rebounds, following up his monster performance in the semis.
Letran and San Beda will face off in the battle for third place.
Deo Cuajao paced the Knights with 12 points, while Manalili recorded an impressive double-double of 11 points and 10 assists.
Santos nearly matched that effort with nine points and nine rebounds.
For the Red Lions, Yukien Andrada led the charge with 21 points and six boards, while freshman MJ Vailoces came off the bench to deliver 13 points.
