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JD Cagulangan—MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

Lately this season, the University of the Philippines (UP) has struggled to find its rhythm at the start of its games. But the Fighting Maroons seemed to always get hold of their mojo and so far, they have come home with a win.

For JD Cagulangan, that has to change.

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And that’s true for the Maroons, who have always been open about their biggest goal in the UAAP Season 87 men’s basketball tournament: to reclaim the throne they once sat on.

State U took one step closer to that dream via a 70-59 rout of Adamson on Sunday that gave the Maroons the second ticket to the Final Four, despite once again having a slow start against the Falcons.

“Maybe it’s because of having too much confidence and relaxing too much especially coming off a break,” Cagulangan said after UP came up with a second consecutive win in round two despite a long hiatus due to game suspensions in the recent week.

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“We need to remove that habit and bring back how we started this season that we put pressure in every start,” he added.

UE vs Adamson

That string of slow starts will be a concern when UP tries to clinch its ninth win in 10 outings in a duel against Ateneo for round 2 of the blockbuster battle of Katipunan on Wednesday at 6:30 pm at Mall of Asia Arena.

In the 2 p.m. contest, rising University of the East, with a solo hold of No. 3 with a 6-3 (win-loss) record, can strengthen its semifinal drive by adding to the woes of Adamson, which is trapped in a five-game drought.

The Blue Eagles, tied with the Falcons and the Fae Eastern U Tamaraws at 3-2, may not be the same powerhouse they used to be but with a semifinal seat still up for grabs, they certainly won’t back down from that fight.

“We [are going to] try and figure out those areas where UP does have some weaknesses and we have to figure out how to counter the many strengths that they have,” coach Tab Baldwin said after losing to another rival La Salle on Saturday.

Baldwin might want to look at UP’s first-quarter performances lately.

‘Big task’

In UP’s last five games, the Maroons are minus-6.4 on average after the first quarter, scoring 14.4 points every opening period in that stretch. That’s a far cry from the first four games of UP’s season, where the team was plus-8 at the end of every quarter on 22.5 points scored.

In four of those last five games, however, the Maroons have streaked to a victory with an average winning margin of 11 points, including a 29-point turnaround against the Falcons in the first round, where UP trailed by 17 at the end of one only to win by 12.

It might not be enough for Ateneo to pounce on UP’s penchant for slow starts, as the Eagles will still have to find a way to finish off the strong-finishing Maroons.

“It’s a big task [and] it’s a challenge and it’s one that we’ll get the players excited about,” Baldwin added.

Ateneo at least has a specimen he can run tests on.

Ateneo held UP to a one-point lead and a 17-point output in the first quarter of their opening-day clash this season, but the Maroons ran off with a 77-61 win anyway. INQ