UAAP: Ateneo subdues Lady Archers, forces sudden death

In the battle between the second and third seeds, the DLSU Lady Archers could not overcome the Ateneo Lady Eagles, suffering a 55-53 loss earlier today in the UAAP Season 78 Women’s Basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Hazelle Yam led ADMU with 19 points, while Danica Jose added six points and 19 rebounds. Jolina Go also contributed 11 points on three three-pointers in the winning effort. La Salle was paced by Mythical Five member Ara Abaca, who scored 11 points and grabbed 15 rebounds. Snow Peñaranda led the Lady Archers in scoring with 12 points.

DLSU started the game hot, leading 14-5 at the two-minute mark of the first quarter. Camille Claro provided the punch off the bench for La Salle, scoring four points. Ateneo, however, was able to answer with a mini-run in the final minute, trimming the Lady Archer lead to five, 16-11, at the end of the opening quarter.

Again, the Taft-based squad came out firing in the second quarter. Eight points from Abaca and Peñaranda, along with a three-pointer from Alyanna Vergara, paced the La Salle offense. The Lady Eagles struggled to make field goals in the quarter but they were able to get to the free throw line, hitting five of their six attempts. The DLSU lead was at 11, 36-25, at the half.

In the third quarter, it was Ateneo’s turn to light it up, outscoring La Salle, 22-8, in the period. The Lady Eagles opened the quarter on an 8-0 run, highlighted by two three-pointers from Go. Penaranda tried to keep DLSU in the game, scoring six points in the quarter. More three-pointers from Go, Yam, and Likhang Javier were enough to give ADMU a slim 47-44 lead heading into the final period.

Lay-ups from Abaca and Ong tied the game at 50 at the 6:37 mark of the fourth quarter. Abaca scored to give the lead back to DLSU, but a lay-up from Yam gave the Lady Eagles the lead for good, 54-53. Tight defense from both teams limited the scoring on both sides. With the score still at 54-53 with nine seconds left in the game, Marga Dagdagan missed a potential, go-ahead three-pointer. After Jose hit one of two free throws, the Lady Archers had a chance to tie the game. In the final possession, Abaca missed two contested jumpers and Jamie Roxas was unable to tip in a game-tying shot.

The Lady Archers outscored the Katipunan-based squad, 17-4, on second chance points but DLSU was cold from the three-point line. La Salle shot just 16 percent from behind the three-point line, while the Lady Eagles converted on six of their 15 attempts.

Due to the loss, the twice-to-beat Lady Archers will now play a do-or-die game against the Lady Eagles on Saturday, November 28, at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum. The winner of that game will go on to face the defending champions, the National University Lady Bulldogs, in the finals.

The scores:

ADMU (55) – Yam 19, Go 11, Jose 6, Javier 6, Tomita 6, Guytingco 4, Aseron 3, Buendia 0, Deacon 0, Nitorreda 0.

DLSU (53) – Peñaranda 12, Abaca 11, Roxas 7, Vergara 5, Dagdagan 4, Castillo 4, Ong 4, Claro 4, Revillosa 2, Gonzales 0, Vela 0, Arciga 0.

Quarter scores: 11-16, 25-36, 47-44, 55-53