Remogat rallies UP past La Salle to make third straight Filoil Preseason Finals

The University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons defeated the La Salle Green Archers 83-78 in the semifinals of the Filoil EcoOil 18th Preseason Cup. UP battled back for most of the game, trailing by one point (72-73) with under two minutes remaining. Rey Remogat then hit a crucial three-pointer to put UP ahead 75-73 with one minute left. After a defensive stop, Remogat sank another three-pointer over Jacob Cortez, extending the lead to 78-73 with 23 seconds to go. Remogat, who had struggled earlier (1-of-11 from deep before the clutch shots), credited his coaches and teammates for maintaining confidence in him.

Despite Vhoris Marasigan bringing La Salle within two points, Gerry Abadiano responded with a free throw and a fastbreak layup to push UP's lead back to 81-75. Although La Salle's Kean Baclaan hit a three-pointer to cut the deficit to three, time ran out as Abadiano sealed the UP victory with two free throws. Remogat led UP with 14 points, while Abadiano and Jalen Stevens added 12 points each, helping UP overcome a 15-point first-half deficit (28-43). UP head coach Goldwin Monteverde emphasized the need for increased effort and energy after halftime. For La Salle, Jacob Cortez scored 16 points with six rebounds, and Kean Baclaan had 14 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists.

UP will face the National University (NU) Bulldogs in the Finals for the ECJ Perpetual Trophy. NU, the fourth seed with a 3-3 elimination round record, upset the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Growling Tigers 96-84 in the other semifinal. NU trailed by 14 points early in the third quarter but mounted a 29-11 run, fueled by 12 close-range points, to take a 72-68 lead late in the quarter. Head coach Jeff Napa stated the focus at halftime was simply to play their game and stick to their strengths in the second half. UST could only get as close as eight points down afterward, as NU leveraged their size advantage to dominate inside scoring (44-36 edge).