TOP seeds Ateneo and La Salle disposed of their semifinal rivals with minimum fuss yesterday, setting up a tantalizing title showdown in the 71st UAAP men's basketball tournament at the Araneta Coliseum.

Ateneo played hot right from the opening tip-off to defuse University of the East 70-50 while defending champion La Salle warded off a spirited challenge from Far Eastern University to register a 67-62 victory.

The Blue Eagles and Green Archers entered the Final Four with twice-to-beat advantages but neither team showed complacency, easily dispatching their rivals to forge another dream encounter starting on Sunday.

Forward James Mangahas scored La Salle's last 10 points to lead the Archers to their 13th finals appearance highlighted by five championship titles. He finished with a career-high 20 points and eight rebounds.

"We showed championship poise, our experience in the Final Four helped us today and the boys really didn't  want another game," said multi-titled La Salle coach Franz Pumaren.

La Salle erased a 55-59 deficit by unleashing a 12-3 blitz in the last five minutes to seal the victory.

JV Casio added 11 points for La Salle and big man Rico Maierhofer contributed eight points and 10 rebounds.

Ric Cawaling had 18 points and Aldrech Ramos scored 12 points and hauled down eight rebounds for the Tamaraws.

La Salle and FEU had actually faced off on Thursday in a playoff for the No. 2 spot and a twice-to-beat incentive in the Final Four, with the Archers prevailing 62-59.

"It was a great series with FEU. Coach (Glenn) Capacio made this a difficult series for us," Pumaren added.