The DLSU Lady Archers finished a sweep of the second round and ended with a 12-2 record to end the UAAP Season 85 elimination round as they thrashed the UE Lady Warriors, 66-41, earlier today, November 26, at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion.
Lee Sario led the way for La Salle with 18 points, including two makes from beyond the arc, while Bettina Binaohan had a dominant inside game with 17 rebounds and 14 markers. Fina Niantcho also played her part in the win, controlling the paint with 13 boards.
Joyce Terrinal spearheaded UE’s attack with 15 points, while Minslie Paule chipped in 10 of her own in a losing effort.
Cold start
Coming into the match as heavy favorites, the Lady Archers looked to dictate the tempo early on. However, the team from Taft found it difficult to get their offense going throughout the first frame. Bea Dalisay hit a step-back three to start the scoring at the 8:15 mark. The Lady Warriors could not capitalize on the Lady Archers’ initial slump as they also had their fair share of struggles, failing to run their offensive sets. UE scored their first points on a bank shot through contact from Terrinal with 6:15 remaining in the first frame. La Salle’s substitutions made the difference as Binaohan rattled off four consecutive points while Sario converted a deep shot at the first quarter buzzer to give the Lady Archers a 13-5 advantage going into the second frame.
Heating up
Marga Jimenez opened the second quarter with four straight points for the Lady Archers, which gave La Salle a 12-point lead. Luisa De La Paz, Niantcho, and Jimenez continued the run for the Taft-based squad from continuous mid-range jumpers and layups—holding the Red and White behind by 23 points from a stunning score of 28-5. Through their tenacious offensive rebounding and tight defense, the Green and White held the UE Lady Warriors captive at five points. Only at the 4:48 mark did the team from Recto break free from their scoring drought curse as Princess Delig hit a perfect three to bring the scoreboard to 28-8. With the Lady Archers already heating up, UE’s Minslie Paule chipped in six points while DLSU’s Joehanna Arciga provided two, closing the game’s first half at 32-15 in La Salle’s favor.
Halting the charge
Going into the halftime break with a commanding hold on the game, the Lady Archers were ambushed by an explosive 15-2 Lady Warriors run that cut the deficit to just four, 34-30, at the 3:57 mark. The run was led by Terrinal who scored 10 of the 15 points in the blast. UE displayed aggression on the glass and on the defensive end, forcing La Salle into consecutive turnovers in the backcourt. Coming out of a much-needed timeout, the Green and White responded with a 14-5 run of their own, which was powered by the penetration from Sario and Binaohan. The Lady Archers proceeded to lock down on defense while the duo took full advantage of their fastbreak opportunities off every missed shot as the Taft-based squad stretched the lead to thirteen at the end of the third quarter, 48-35.
Immortalizing the lead
Looking to make up for UE’s deficiencies, Joyce Terrinal kicked off the last quarter with a floater, but the Lady Archers refuted—making clear they were not backing down as Lee Sario restored balance to the score, 50-37 with 9:15 left at the clock. DLSU perpetually tallied gains with lead-scorer Sario and Binaohan’s consistent shot-making and back-and-forth rally, advancing them to a 23-point lead, 60-37, at the 5:01 mark. Finally, after giving the team from Recto no room to breathe, the Lady Archers completed their second-seeded advancement to the final four with a score of 66-41.
Sario shared her thoughts on clinching their place in the Final Four after a long drought, “We’re happy because we know we earned it and we worked hard for this. But, it is not really a time to relax, we need to grind more and improve on both our strengths and weaknesses.”
Equipped with a favorable twice-to-beat advantage, the DLSU Lady Archers will face the UST Growling Tigresses in the Final Four stage.
The Scores:
DLSU 66 – Sario 18, Binaohan 14, Torres 8, Jimenez 6, Arciga 4, de la Paz 4, Niantcho 4, Dalisay 4, Camba 2, Ahmed 2, San Juan 0, Espinas 0, Castillo 0, Bacierto 0
UE 41 – Terrinal 15, Paule 10, Kone 8, Delig 6, Caraig 2, Sajol 0, Lorena 0, Silva 0, Dela Rosa 0. Gervacio 0, Nama 0, De Leon 0
Quarter Scores: 13-5, 32-15, 48-35, 66-41
