The DLSU Lady Archers prevailed in a closely-fought matchup with the AdU Lady Falcons, 53-52, to conclude Round One of the UAAP Season 88 Women’s Basketball Tournament earlier today, October 22, at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
Leading the Lasallian charge was Zyla Lubrico with 12 points, four rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Alongside her were Kyla Go and Kyla Sunga, tallying 11 and eight points, respectively, to help seal the decisive win for La Salle.
Meanwhile, the Adamsonians kept the matchup close with Elaine Etang garnering 12 points, four rebounds, and four assists. Kemi Adeshina and Cris Padilla also chipped in with seven and six points, respectively.
Back and forth affair
With the teams coming into the game with an even record in the standings, the first exchanges of the match saw an energetic opening from both sides. DLSU struck first as Aiesha Dizon converted a three-point play, making a layup and converting the succeeding free throw, 3-0. La Salle also started well defensively with their full-court pressure, forcing the Lady Falcons to take difficult shots. Adamson finally got off the mark at the 7:26 minute, but A. Dizon once again responded with a free throw, 4-2. Nevertheless, the Adamsonians began to pick up some rhythm to even out the contest. Fighting fire with fire, the Lady Falcons also enacted a full-court press to make life difficult for the Lady Archers. Despite the adjustment, Go made a nifty floater before Lubrico added to the lead with a jumpshot to extend the lead to 9-6. The San Marcelino side once again caught up and took the lead through a big three-pointer from Jam Meniano from the corner, followed by a fast break from Angeline Alaba, 12-11. DLSU’s coaching staff, weary of the fact that Adamson was gaining momentum, called a timeout to ease the pressure for the Green-and-White with 1:24 left on the clock. The timeout proved successful as Lubrico landed a deep three-pointer, before Adamson’s Adeshina split her free throws to end the first quarter, 14-13.
Eager to take control of the game, the Lady Falcons began the second quarter with zest, taking the lead with another big three-pointer from Alaba before Etang pierced the DLSU defense and secured a layup, 18-16. The Lady Archers’ composure began to wither as AdU’s sharper defense forced difficult looks. To make matters worse for the Lasallians, Etang made another big three-pointer before scoring off a fast break on the following possession to put AdU up by seven, 23-16. La Salle’s rebounding game fell behind, with the white shirts dominating the defensive and offensive rebounds. DLSU Head Coach Cholo Villanueva once again called a momentum-stopping timeout to relieve the intense pressure being applied by AdU. Following the timeout, Go converted on an and-one basket, and Shantei Dizon followed suit with a reverse layup to cut the lead down even further, 27-24. The Lasallians began to regain their composure on the court, putting up better defensive rebounds. Luisa Dela Paz then won and converted two freebies to cut the lead down to one, to the delight of the Lady Archers after what seemed like a strong Adamsonian quarter. With the first half coming to a close, La Salle’s Kyla Sunga went on a spree with four points in succeeding plays, finishing with back-to-back floaters to regain the lead for DLSU, 30-29.
Shifting momentums
Echoing the offensive spark they showed in their previous match, the Lady Archers opened the second half with renewed aggression on the glass. Despite the Lady Falcons drawing first blood from another second-chance basket from Adeshina, the green shirts answered quickly, forcing a turnover that gave way to Kyla Go’s drive and finish. The quick pace of the first half carried on to the second with Sunga knocking down a tidy mid-range jumper and Adeshina answering back on the other end. As the quarter reached its halfway mark, the Green-and-White’s intensity on defense soon paid dividends, with the team leading 37-33. Go further fueled the offensive rampage, stealing the ball from the white shirts, leading to a fast-break layup. Adding to this run, Lubrico and S. Dizon’s back-to-back buckets and a string of turnovers from the Lady Falcons saw La Salle build a double-digit cushion, 43-33. A desperate attempt from Etang to stop the bleeding cut the lead momentarily to eight, but Anastacio answered from downtown to restore a comfortable margin for the Taft-based squad. Kim Limbago’s final attempt trimmed the gap heading into the break, leaving La Salle ahead, 46-37, in a quarter defined by aggressive defense and smart movement inside the paint from the Taft-based squad.
The Lady Falcons opened the fourth period with the aggression they lacked in the previous quarter, correcting their second-chance points and immediately moving to the paint. Apag’s early interior scoring sparked a 4-0 run to open the period, while La Salle struggled to find its rhythm on offense, a problem further compounded when Kyla Go picked up her third personal foul and was forced to play more cautiously. The high intensity of the final frame peaked with Etang cutting into the Lady Archers’ lead with a strong finish, and making a technical free throw, trimming the gap to just four. Just as momentum seemed to shift, Lubrico buried a clutch three-pointer, followed by a quick assist leading to a Sunga basket. Adamson retaliated quickly, with Adeshina scoring from the inside and Padilla trimming the lead to one at the line. A late five-second violation gave the Lady Falcons one last shot at victory, but Meniano’s three at the buzzer caught the rim and bounced out, giving the Lady Archers a slim 53-52 victory.
Lady Archers Head Coach Villanueva praised his team’s efforts in the hard-fought victory, while acknowledging the room for improvement. “We were in control of the game, but we made some mistakes down the stretch. We are going to improve, but not relinquishing that lead and wanting to win the game, I credit my girls for that because they had that winning mentality down the stretch,” he stated. Villanueva also credited the team’s solid defense as the reason behind today’s win, highlighting that the “last challenge by Sunga on that three-point, that was a very good challenge to win the game for us. We win games through our defense. We made a stop to win the game.” Meanwhile, Lubrico expressed similar remarks on the team’s room for growth. “I believe [that] we have a lot to improve on pa, especially on our offensive and defensive end. And marami talagang akong tiwala sa team, and especially [in] my coaches and teammates.”
(I believe that we have a lot to still improve on, especially on our offensive and defensive ends. And I really place a lot of trust in my team, and especially in my coaches and teammates.”)
With strong Final Four hopes, the DLSU Lady Archers aim to keep the spark alive as they open their Round Two campaign of the UAAP Season 88 Women’s Basketball Tournament against the top-seeded UST Golden Tigresses on Saturday, October 25, at 7 pm at the same venue.
The Scores:
DLSU 53 – Lubrico 12, Go 11, S. Dizon 8, Sunga 8, A. Dizon 4, Anastacio 3, Camba 3, Dela Paz 2, Villarin 2, Delos Reyes 0, Mendoza 0, Villapando 0
ADU 52 – Etang 12, Adeshina 7, Padilla 6, Angeline Alaba 5, Bajo 5, Meniano 5, Apag 4, Limbago 3, Munoz 3, Angela Alaba 2, Cortez 0, Mazo 0
Quarter Scores: 14-13, 30-29, 46-37, 53-52
