ADMU Lady Eagles score 31 in 1st period, blow by UE

One big quarter. The Ateneo de Manila University Lady Eagles opened their match against the University of the East Lady Warriors with a 31-point first quarter blitzkrieg, and cruised their way to a 70-56 decision at the Mall of Asia Arena. The Lady Eagles’ starting point guard Sara Bo-ot orchestrated ADMU’s game-long dominance en route to joint team-high 10 points, on 4/5 shooting, with 4 assists. The Lady Warriors drew strong performances from Eunique Chan and Nicole Mendina, who each scored 15 points, but were unable to overcome a balanced Ateneo offense. The Lady Eagles climb to 5-5, which leaves them right in the middle of a 4-way dogfight with FEU, ADU and UST for playoff position. The 2-8 Lady Warriors remain mired near the bottom of the standings, above only winless UP.

Ateneo’s first quarter explosion was fuelled by remarkably well-distributed scoring. Sara Bo-ot and backcourt running mate Likha Javier scored 5 points apiece in the period, but more importantly, dished out a combined 4 assists to their energetic teammates. The Lady Eagles’ impressive passing and off-the-ball movement allowed 5 Eagles to score 4 or more points in the quarter, on a searing 66.7% shooting clip. ADMU superstar centre Danica Jose, who struggled with her shot all game long, bannered a stifling team defence that led to UE shooting a miserable 25% in the opening stanza. From there, the Lady Eagles held serve and cruised to a surprisingly easy victory.

Danica Jose finished with 10 points, albeit on a pedestrian 2/10 outing from the field, but also turned in a typically dominant 15 rebounds and 5 rejections. UE reserve Nicole Mendina sparkled throughout the match, dropping 15 points on an efficient 7 of 13 shots. The imposing yet startlingly dexterous Eunique Chan laboured against the towering Jose’s defence, but still managed to put up a near double-double of 15 points and 8 boards.