Everybody knew that this was coming and, at long last, it has finally arrived.

One year after facing off in the UAAP Finals for the first time in history, the DLSU Green Archers and the UP Fighting Maroons are set to face off for the championship once again this season.

Both teams made quick work of their lower-seeded Final Four opponents, needing just one game to advance to the best-of-three finals. UP beat the pesky UST Growling Tigers, 78-69, while DLSU blew out the AdU Soaring Falcons, 70-55, in a game where they led by as much as 27 points.

The reigning UAAP champion Green Archers will enter this series as the favorites to win it all. They finished on top of the double round robin elimination round with a 12-2 win-loss record, including two wins versus the Fighting Maroons. With soon-to-be crowned back-to-back UAAP Most Valuable Player Kevin Quiambao and MVP runner-up Mike Phillips leading the charge for La Salle, this team has not only dominated this campaign, but is also gaining ground in the discussion on the strongest DLSU teams of all time.

The Green Archers draw strength from their elite defense and this will have to continue in the finals if they are to become the first La Salle team since 2001 to win consecutive UAAP championships. On a per game basis across the eliminations, DLSU led the lead in rebounding (49.9) and second chance points (13.6), limited opponents to the lowest three-point shooting percentage (22.4%), and allowed the least perimeter (22.4) and second chance (8.9) points. 

Despite the Green Archers’ statistical dominance though, the result of this series is far from a foregone conclusion. What drives the narrative in UP’s favor is that they were missing key players in their two prior meetings against La Salle–JD Cagulangan in the first round and Quentin Millora-Brown in the second–and beat them twice, including the knockout finals, in the FilOil EcoOil Preseason Cup.

In fact, the Fighting Maroons have yet to use their devastating pick-and-roll involving Cagulangan, arguably the best point guard in amateur basketball today, and the 6’10 Millora-Brown versus DLSU this season. These two players have played well versus the Green Archers this season, with Millora-Brown tallying 10 points, 10 rebounds, and four blocks in their first contest and Cagulangan scoring a game-high 22 points along with six rebounds, five assists, and four steals in the second round.

The way that these two perform on the floor together versus La Salle and its top notch defense will be a crucial factor in this series and may ultimately determine whether or not UP can win it all. 

The Fighting Maroons’ other main players–Harold Alarcon, Francis Lopez, Reyland Torres, and Gerry Abadian–have generally struggled offensively versus DLSU over the past two years, yet all it might take is just two of these four to step up to swing the odds in UP’s favor.

Last year’s series came down to a winner-take-all Game 3 that turned out to be a slugfest from the opening tip to the final buzzer. Quiambao hit a couple of timely baskets and free throws to secure the championship for La Salle in a match that could have truly gone either way. This year’s UAAP Finals promise to be just as thrilling, with the outcome likely hinging on the smallest of margins between the two premier collegiate basketball programs in the country today.

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Game 1 – December 8, 5:30 pm, Smart Araneta Coliseum

Game 2 – December 11, 5:30 pm, Mall of Asia Arena

Game 3* – December 14, 5:30 pm, Smart Araneta Coliseum

*If necessary