The hot-shooting De La Salle University cruised to its third straight win in the UAAP Season 78 women’s basketball tournament after a 76-34 beating of the University of the Philippines Sunday at the Blue Eagle Gym.
Ana Castillo set the tone for a lopsided affair after hitting back to back triples early on, scoring 8 points in a 14-2 La Salle start.
The Lady Maroons tried to fight back, as baskets by Bea Daez and Lourdes Ordoverza cut the double-digit deficit down to 14-21 at the end of the first quarter.
But the Lady Archers quickly asserted control in the next frame, aided by their full court press and bench production.
Joehanna Arciga and Camille Claro both came off the bench to provide damage, extending the La Salle advantage to 40-23 at the half.
The Taft side never let up after that point, going on a huge surge in the third period behind the interior dominance of bigs Snow Penaranda and Ara Abaca to make it 45-27.
As if the damage was not enough, La Salle went on a 12-0 run to close the third as Claro scored 5 more in transition.
La Salle then opened the fourth with 13 unanswered points to erect their biggest margin at 73-30.
Claro led the balanced scoring with 13 points and dished out 5 assists while Castillo added 11 points including an efficient 3-for-4 from three-point territory.
La Salle, which improved to 3-1, generated 30 points off 21 UP turnovers, and also held a 46-12 lead in points in the paint.
UP in contrast, shot a measly 22 percent from the field and 0-for-18 from long distance. The Diliman side dropped to 0-4, being relegated to the cellar.
The Scores:
La Salle (76) – Claro 13, Castillo 11, Arciga 8, Abaca 8, Vergara 6, Penaranda 6, Revillosa 5, Figueroa 5, Roxas 4, Dagdagan 3, Oyao 3, Ong 2, Gonzales 2, Vela 0, Pineda 0, Malarde 0.
UP (34) – Daez 10, Esplana 6, Tatel 4, Pesquera 4, Ordoveza 4, Rodas 2, Tan 2, Medina 1, Lapid 1, Isip 0, Oliva 0, Franco 0, Eder 0, Erquiaga 0, Cruz 0.
Quarterscores: 21-14, 40-23, 57-30, 76-34.
