Lady Archers conquer AdU, open 2nd round with a victory
The De La Salle University (DLSU) Lady Archers conquered the Adamson University (AdU) Lady Falcons, 71–61, earlier today at the SMART Araneta Coliseum. With this victory, La Salle improved their record to 3–5, while the Falcons dropped to 2–6 to open the second round of the UAAP Season 86 tournament.
It was a slow start for both teams in the opening quarter as Cheska Apag’s three-pointer and Aji Bojang’s jumper occured only after two minutes in, 2–3. A Beth Delos Reyes layup managed to get La Salle within two, 4–6, but the Falcons soon got into a rhythm, making a 6–0 run courtesy of layups from Elaine Etang. Missed shots and turnovers from the Archers rendered them scoreless up until Tricia Mendoza’s one of two free throws and Bea Dalisay’s midrange jumper attempted to kickstart their offense, 7–17, but a turnover cut it short. Arabel Bacierto’s layup in the dying seconds of the quarter was the last play for both teams, 9–17.
Determined to catch up, Mendoza opened up the scoring for La Salle in the second kanto with two free throws, 11–17, but Victoria Adeshina responded with a boarding shot. From there, the Green and White continued to attempt to get their offense going, but most shots resulted in a miss. Lee Sario and Luisa San Juan shots from beyond the arc gave a little light to the Archers, 19–25, before an Apag jay extended the lead to eight. Then, turnovers from the Falcons followed by Mendoza’s jumper and free throws placed La Salle within four, 26–30. Missed free throws from the Taft-based squad and a Ritz Bajo drive to the basket soon ended the first half, 26–32.
At the beginning of the third quarter, the Lady Archers were more aggresive on offense as Bettina Binaohan’s layup and Mendoza’s offensive putback cut the separation to two. In the eight minute, a Sario three and Paraiso making a free throw shifted momentum to La Salle, 34–32. Kim Limbago’s free throw attempted to rally AdU’s offense, but the Green and White then went on a 7–0 run heading into midway through the quarter. La Salle continued to be dominant on offense from this point forward with San Juan leading the scoring from jump shots, 47–36. Apag completing a three-point play after being fouled and two Ann Dampios three-pointers chipped at the lead, but a Bernice Paraiso layup extended La Salle’s lead again. The Lady Archers then closed out the quarter still ahead, 51–47, after an Adeshina offensive putback.
In the last ten minutes of the match, Adeshina’s layup managed to cut the lead to two, before Bea Dalisay widened the gap again with a floater and a jay, 55–49. Then, Crisnalyn Padilla and Francine Meniano making good on layups combined with missed shots from the Archers placed AdU within three. Newly-subbed in San Juan then responded with a shot from beyond the arc, 60–54. During the last four minutes of the game, both teams missed scoring opportunities before a Sario drive to the basket and Mendoza free throws extended La Salle’s advantage to nine. After calling a timeout, the Falcons then diminished the lead via jumpers from Elaine Etang and Dampios, 68–59. But Adamson committing fouls and being at penalty, allowed the Lady Archers to widen the separation again as Binaohan and Sario made free throws, 71–61, with 0.04 seconds left. The Falcons were then unable to get another shot in, giving La Salle their third victory of the season.
The Lady Archers aim to build a winning streak against the UST Growling Tigresses on Sunday, October 29, 11 AM, at the same venue.
Box scores:
DLSU 71- Mendoza 17, San Juan 11, Sario 10, Paraiso 10, Dalisay 8, Binaohan 7, Delos Reyes 3, Bojang 2, Bacierto 2, De La Paz 1, Sunga 0
AdU 61- Adeshina 11, Apag 10, Etang 8, Dampios 8, Limbago 7, Bajo 5, Padilla 4, Meniano 4, Alaba 2, Dumelod 2, Agojo 0, Tano 0
Quarter scores: 9–17, 26–32, 51–47, 71–61
