NATIONAL University (NU) looks to continue its winning ways and gain the solo lead in the team standings as it faces De La Salle University (DLSU) in the UAAP Season 86 men's basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena on Saturday, October 28.
Riding on a five-game winning streak, the second seed and 7-1 Bulldogs face the third seed and 5-3 Green Archers at 4 p.m., their match serving as the main event of the second round's second game day.
University of the East (UE) and University of Santo Tomas (UST) clash to open the curtains at 2 p.m.
With ace point guard Kean Baclaan leading the charge again, NU hacked out a gutsy 64-61 win over UE last Wednesday to rise to 7-1 and put itself in a position to tie the longest winning streak this season at six games and gain the top seed as well.
University of the Philippines (UP) was the first to do such a winning-run this season before bowing to Ateneo at the close of the first round last Sunday.
While it will be tough for the Bulldogs to sustain their rotation considering a lot of their players are injured or sick, coach Jeff Napa said that they will remain steady in their pursuit to win as they look to repeat on the Green Archers this second round.
NU had La Salle's number in the first round, scoring an 80-77 overtime win on October 15.
"Our battle cry will stay the same — stop, stop, stop, until we're able to stop whoever we need to stop to get that win," said Napa, whose point guard Steve Nash Enriquez will be out against La Salle following a jaw injury.
Meanwhile, La Salle, led by MVP front-runner Kevin Quimbao, is also streaking with back-to-back wins after bulldozing UST, 100-69, also last Wednesday.