Coming into the game as underdogs, the DLSU Lady Archers were unable to sustain their offense as they fell to the dominant NU Lady Bulldogs, 93-72, earlier today, October 19, at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion.
Fina Niantcho displayed another stellar performance as she paced the Lady Archers with 20 points and six rebounds in a losing effort, while Lee Sario and Charmine Torres added 17 and 12 markers, respectively.
Kristine Cayabyab led the charge for the Lady Bulldogs with 27 points, including three triples. Camille Clarin was automatic from downtown with five three-pointers, as she finished with 19 markers. Annick Edimo Tiky controlled the paint with her 15 points while Surada scored most of her 12 markers on the fastbreak.
Keeping it close
Faced with the longstanding powerhouse of UAAP women’s basketball, the Lady Archers looked to counter the Lady Bulldogs’ explosive offense with their full-court press early in the game. La Salle kept their opponents on a short leash through their offensive sets and relentless effort on defense until a late 7-1 run that gave the team from Sampaloc some cushion to end the first frame with a six-point lead, 18-12.
Both teams’ offenses started to get going at the start of the second quarter, as the Lady Archers scored four quick points off of dribble penetration plays. This was matched by the Lady Bulldogs’ crisp passing that easily found an opening inside for easy layups on multiple consecutive possessions. Clarin’s triple threatened to open the floodgates for NU’s offense, but Sario went on a scoring explosion to give her side seven straight points off two layups and a three-pointer from the top of the key to pull La Salle to within two, 25-23, at the 7:47 mark. However, the Lady Bulldogs answered with a stifling 8-0 run—propelled by their trademark defense and mastery on the fastbreak. The Lady Archers were not able to match their opponents’ firepower and fell behind, 40-32, at the end of the first half.
Losing firepower
NU picked up where they left off from the first half as Clarin opened the second half with a shot from downtown. However, Torres responded with two quick baskets to put La Salle within single digits. From then on, the Lady Bulldogs took over the game with their unstoppable offense as they scored freely both inside and outside, forcing the Lady Archers into facing their smothering defense. The team from Sampaloc made their way to a 19-point advantage, 59-40, at the 3:42 mark of the third quarter. Fortunately, the Taft-based squad showed resilience as they answered back with a blistering 10-0 run, which was again led by Sario, that cut the lead to nine with 1:38 remaining in the third period. After coming out of the timeout, Cayabyab extinguished La Salle’s fire with two consecutive three-pointers—giving NU back the momentum that they never again relinquished.
The Lady Archers desperately fought to keep themselves in the game in the fourth quarter but the Lady Bulldogs’ offense remained relentless as they made what seemed to be all the right passes in transition and were on fire from deep with six threes in the fourth quarter. NU cruised through the final period en route to a 93-72 victory.
After the hard-fought game, the DLSU Lady Archers will look to end the first round of UAAP Season 85 on a high note versus the AdU Soaring Falcons on October 22, Saturday, at 6:30 pm at the Ynares Sports Center.
The Scores:
NU 93 – Cayabyab 27, Clarin 19, Tiky 15, Surada, 12, Cacho 9, Fabruada 6, Canuto 5, Betanio 0, Villareal 0, Solis 0, Bartolo 0, Talas 0, Ico 0, Estacio 0, Dimaunahan 0
DLSU 72 – Niantcho 20, Sario 17, Torres 12, Binaohan 8, Espinas 6, Arciga 6, de la Paz 3, Jimenez 0, Dalisay 0, Ahmed 0, Castillo 0, Camba 0
Quarter Scores: 18-12, 40-32, 65-52, 93-72
