The DLSU Lady Archers were unable to find their rhythm as they collapsed in a 97-67 blowout loss at the paws of the NU Lady Bulldogs in their Round Two encounter of the UAAP Women’s Basketball Tournament.
Despite the defeat, Kyla Go led all scorers in the game, logging a 21-point outing, while Kyla Sunga and Paulina Anastacio both contributed 10 points each.
On the other hand, Kristine Cayabyab put up 20 points in the win, with Aloha Betanio and Karl Ann Pingol backing her up with 12 and 11 points, respectively.
Deadly threes
The match commenced as La Salle brought an aggressive offense into the game against the defending champions. NU quickly responded with four buckets on the other end, using plays in the paint, as well as suffocating the Lady Archers with a full-court defense. Confronted with an early six-point gap halfway into the quarter, 8-2, DLSU went back to the drawing board and locked down the paint with a zone. However, they could not find options as the Bulldog defense put the brakes on key players, ensuring they did not get touches. With four minutes left, La Salle employed their full-court press, but the tables flipped as NU’s Dindy Medina capitalized on a fastbreak bucket, extending the gap. Go then tuned her offense, earning consecutive trips to the charity stripe as the Taft-based squad secured back-to-back steals with their full-court defense being rewarded. Go earned a basket off a steal, followed by a pair of dishes from Sunga to Aiesha Dizon in the fastbreak. Sunga placed the cherry on top of the invigorated run as she took the Green-and-White’s first lead with a jumper, 13-12. The Lady Archers fired on with their newfound resolve, getting stops until a last-second counterstrike from deep by NU’s Betanio saw them retake the lead to close off the first, trailing narrowly 17-15.
With the second quarter underway, Zyla Lubrico kicked things off with an easy layup to tie the game at 17-all. However, Betanio remained steady with another three-pointer as NU picked up the pace and secured another eight-point lead, 25-17, prompting DLSU to switch strategies yet again. The Lady Archers found opportunities once more from drop-off passes, with Shantei Dizon converting and steals from Tricia Mendoza to net another transition basket. The team also successfully executed their full-court press, putting pressure on NU’s shoulders and cutting the deficit to two after their scoring stretch midway through the period, 25-23. Momentum then shifted toward the Bulldogs’ favor as they remained hot from long range with Cayabyab’s two big threes followed by her own and-one play, all the while DLSU committed turnovers in the half-court, with the margin quickly inflating to double digits, 39-29. The Lady Archers could not find an answer to NU’s renewed motion offense, as they could only chip away at the lead from NU’s deadly streak of three-point shots. Go snuck her way for the last basket at the baseline, closing the quarter for the Lady Archers as they slipped behind, 50-36, heading into the second half.
Free throw fuel
Attempting to close in the gap in the second half, the Lady Archers started inching with Go’s fouls and successful free throws to start the final stretch as the Lady Bulldogs began drifting away, 50-38. Bon Solis and Marga Villanueva of the Blue-and-Gold responded with two consecutive fiery jump shots to widen the gap, 56-38. The third quarter became a chaotic back-and-forth, with both teams plagued by turnovers, causing the momentum to slip through their fingers. While the Archers had found success in the paint during the first half, they began to capitalize on NU’s fouls in the second, racking up most of their points from the foul line in a battle to stay within reach of the Lady Bulldogs, 58-40. However, the Lady Bulldogs began to turn the tide once again, exploiting the paint to further extend their lead to outplay the Archers inside. Struggling to catch up, DLSU’s Eli Delos Reyes had a series of bad turnovers, resulting in NU gaining possession and pulling further ahead, 62-40. The Lady Archers failed to secure crucial rebounds and missed several key shots, leaving points on the table. Despite the setbacks, Go stepped up and contributed key shots to keep the Green-and-White in the game, 68-45. Making matters worse, Medina fired a two-pointer and quickly followed with a triple, lifting the score to 76-47. In response, DLSU made a brief push, highlighted by Steph Villapando hitting the team’s first three-pointer, cutting the score to 76-53. The Lady Archers still had a long road ahead as they entered the final period with a 21-point deficit.
The fourth quarter began with a 5-0 scoring run from the Sampaloc-based squad, sparked by a trey with the aid of Angel Surada, 81-55. The Lady Archers, now faced with an uphill battle, found themselves unable to match the Lady Bulldogs’ offensive surge, missing critical points to breach the momentum of the title-holders. Not long after, DLSU’s S. Dizon responded with a jump shot, bringing the score to 81-57, but Villanueva and Solis came back with back-to-back three-pointers after a turnover from DLSU’s Edel Araza. NU sparked a 12-0 run as the score quickly ballooned to 91-57 with the Archers being unable to field a basket. Redeeming themselves lightly, Go and Sunga converted jump shots and ignited eight straight points for the Taft-based team, but NU ran away with the victory, 97-67, securing their eleventh consecutive Final Four appearance.
The Lady Archers keep their hopes up in their fight for a Final Four berth as they face archrivals ADMU Blue Eagles next Sunday, November 9, at 7 pm, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Scores:
DLSU 67 – Go 21, Sunga 10, Anastacio 10, Mendoza 6, A. Dizon 6, S. Dizon 5, Villapando 3, Araza 2, Camba 2, Lubrico 2, Dela Paz 0, Delos Reyes 0, Villarin 0,
NU 97 – Cayabyab 20, Betanio 18, Pingol 12, Medina 11, Surada 11, Villanueva 10, Solis 7, Garcia 6, Alterado 2, Pring 0, Ico 0
Quarter Scores: 17-15, 50-36, 76-55, 97-67
