UAAP: Lady Archers survive UST sans Abaca

The DLSU Lady Archers held on and survived a late rally by the UST Growling Tigresses to come out with a 56-50 victory as they officially began their UAAP title defense at the Blue Eagle Gym in Quezon City.

Reigning UAAP Finals MVP Trisha Piatos led the charge for DLSU with 23 points and five rebounds while Nicole Garcia and Steph Vergara added nine and eight markers respectively.

Kim Reyes topscored for UST with 14 points while Lore Rivera added a double-double of 11 points and 14 rebounds, eight of them came from offensive boards.

The Tigresses started the first quarter on a 7-0 run behind the hot hands of Reyes who scored five points during that period. La Salle however would put on a 10-0 blast of their own to snatch the lead from the Growling Tigresses to end at 14-12.

UST ignited another 7-0 run late in the second quarter before Piatos nailed her first three-pointer of the season. The Taft-based squad trailed by one, 24-23, at the end of the first half led by Garcia’s eight points.

The Lady Archers had a strong start in the third, outscoring the Tigresses, 9-2, in the first five minutes of the second half. Piatos torched UST with ten points off two three-pointers and a foul shot. UST was held to a measly nine points by La Salle’s defense in the quarter.

The Tigresses took advantage of the early penalty situation of the Lady Archers. With this situation at hand, UST was able to trim their deficit to just three points with just a minute and a half remaining in regulation. UST’s Grace Brillante missed all of her four free throws in the dying seconds despite DLSU’s turnovers, which gave the Taft-based squad their first win of the tournament.

With the absence of UAAP 76 Mythical Five member Ara Abaca, Piatos stepped up her game, hitting five of 10 shots from rainbow country, four of them came in the second half. Rookie Center Jamie Roxas made her debut with two points and four boards.

“Actually, we prepared against the post plays of UST,” DLSU head coach Tyrone Bautista stated. “Because during season tournaments, we noticed they have been so effective in the post,” he added.

Up next for the Lady Archers are the FEU Lady Tamaraws on July 16 also at the Blue Eagle Gym.

The Scores:

DLSU (56) – Piatos 23, Garcia 9, Vergara 8, Claro 6, Melendres 4, Concuera 2, A. Ong 2, Roxas 2, M. Ong 0, Castillo 0.

UST (50) – Reyes 14, Rivera 11, Felisarte 10, Cortes 8, Magdaluyo 4, Siapoc 3, Isanan 0, Brillante 0, Mandilag 0, Angeles 0, Peňaflor 0

Quarter Scores: 14-12, 24-23, 41-33, 56-50