UAAP: Vergara, Peñaranda lead Lady Archers to season opener win against Lady Tamaraws

The DLSU Lady Archers began their UAAP Season 79 campaign with a 76-52 win over the FEU Lady Tamaraws. La Salle’s Chay Vergara had 19 points, which included five out of six three pointers.  Snow Peñaranda also had a double-double performance of 15 points and 13 rebounds. Valerie Mamaril led the way for FEU with nine points.

1st Half

Both teams started off the game slowly but great defensive sets by the Lady Archers gave them a 7-0 start. DLSU was able to penetrate FEU’s defense in the paint, earning high percentage shots. The Lady Archers were not short defensively, as they were able to force turnovers with their full court pressure and shoot from the perimeter. DLSU led, 20-11, at the end of the first quarter.

FEU began the second quarter quickly, cutting the Lady Archer lead to six after a Precious Arellado three-pointer. Great tenacity in the paint got DLSU in the penalty, and gave the Lady Tamaraws multiple chances from the free throw line, converting on six of their eight attempts. Chay Vergara did her best to keep La Salle in front, scoring seven points in the quarter to give DLSU a slim 31-28 lead to end the half. However with their inability to handle the ball, displayed by their 17 turnovers, and lack of team play, with only three assists by the team in the first half, FEU was able to keep the margin close.

2nd Half

The Lady Archers came out of the locker room, forcing multiple FEU turnovers with their relentless full court pressure. Their tenacious defense paved the way for multiple fast break opportunities, highlighted by three straight lay-ups by Snow Peñaranda, who struggled with early foul trouble in the first half.

FEU switched to a zone defense in the fourth quarter, but to no avail as Vergara was able to find holes in the defense and drain four three pointers to extend the lead of the Lady Archers. Every time the Lady Tamaraws tried mounting a come back, La Salle intensified its defense and responded immediately with points of its own. Camille Claro and Jamie Roxas picked the defense apart with pick and rolls, while Kathy Gonzales spotted up from the corner, to blow the game wide open. FEU was held scoreless in the final 4:30 of the game, as La Salle cruised to a 76-52 victory.

Vergara led the way for the Lady Archers scoring 19 points, highlighted by her sizzling five of six shooting from beyond the arc. Peñaranda and Claro contributed in the winning effort with a double-double and 13 points, respectively. FEU never led or got the game tied as they had a hard time generating consistent offense against DLSU’s full court pressure.

Coach Cholo Villanueva emphasized the contrast of the Lady Archers throughout the game, with their individual play in the first half and cohesive team play in the latter half, a key indicator of which was their 17 of 21 turnovers coming from the first 20 minutes of play alone. Villanueva explained the change that happened during halftime, sharing, “I always say we’re playing in a team concept, there’s no one player who can win the game for us so they started moving the ball, they started playing defense”.

The Lady Archers are up next against the UP Lady Maroons on Saturday, September 10, at 10 am in the Smart Araneta Coliseum.