UAAP: Lady Archers open second round with loss to AdU

The DLSU Lady Archers hit another roadblock in their title defense this season after stumbling to the AdU Lady Falcons, 55-50, in their first game of the second round at the Blue Eagle Gym in Quezon City.

The Lady Falcons were led by the gutsy play of guard Jinky Balasta, who scored 18 points, six rebounds, and five assists for an all-around performance. Jesusa Avila added 15 markers of her own to guide Adamson’s upset of DLSU.

Reigning Finals MVP Trisha Piatos had 18 points on four three pointers to lead the fight for the Taft-based squad, which lost its second consecutive game after dropping the previous game against the undefeated Lady Bulldogs in the last game of the first round.

Adamson dominated La Salle early in the game with an 18-12 advantage during the first ten minutes of the game, but the Green-and-White regrouped in the second quarter to establish a one-point lead entering halftime, 29-28.

Avila opened the second half with six straight points to regain the lead, 34-29. Cass Santos broke the silence with a layup to score DLSU’s first points of the third quarter at the five-minute mark. Back-to-back baskets from AdU’s Janille de Castro extended the lead to seven, but rookie center Jamie Roxas ended the quarter with back-to-back baskets of her own to tie the game at 38 entering the final canto.

At the start of the fourth period, the Falcons unleashed an 8-0 blast to lead the game 46-38 with six minutes remaining. Piatos, however, converted on a triple coming off a time-out then scored on a floater, cutting the lead down to three. Garcia hit another three to tie the game at 46-all. The Lady Falcons, however, took advantage of La Salle’s penalty situation and used it to get to the line to seal the game with free throws.

The Lady Falcons’ aggressiveness inside the paint was a major factor in the win, as a huge disparity between the free throw attempts of both squads went in the Lady Falcons’ favor with 23 compared to the Lady Archers’ six.

With two consecutive losses, the Lady Archers look to bounce back in their next game which will be against their arch rivals, the ADMU Lady Eagles, this coming August 20.

The scores:

AdU (55) – Balasta 18, Avila 15, De Castro 7, Ballaso 6, Mateo 5, J. Ong 4, Generoso 0, Amper 0, Durens 0, Alcoy 0, Ido 0, Osano 0

DLSU (50) – Piatos 18, M. Ong 8, Garcia 7, Roxas 6, Claro 4, Santos 2, A. Ong 2, Oyao 2, Concuera 1, Castillo 0, Scott 0, Lumba 0, Melendres 0, Vergara 0

Quarter scores: 18-12, 28-29, 38-38, 55-50