After three consecutive defeats, the Ateneo de Manila University Lady Eagles were triumphant once again as they trounced the Far Eastern University Lady Tamaraws 54-39 in the UAAP Season 79 Women’s Basketball Tournament.
Jollina Go led the Blue and White with 19 points today at the FilOil Flying V Arena in San Juan City as the Lady Eagles started the second round on a high note.
“It was all about effort, individual effort and then the players fused it into a team effort. There were lapses. There were times we weren’t in sync, but we made up for it because of our scrappiness and the hustle that we showed today,” commented Lady Eagles mentor John Flores after the game.
The Katipunan-based school was the dominant team throughout the contest. Ateneo led from the start until the end of the game. The Lady Eagles raced to a 22-16 advantage going into the halftime break.
Although FEU’s Princess Jumuad was able to bring the Lady Tamaraws within a point early in the third quarter, a 7-0 run capped off by Melissa Newsome’s free throws helped the Lady Eagles regain the initiative with a 32-24 lead.
As the Lady Eagles ended the third period with a 34-28 separation from the Lady Tamaraws, Ateneo diminished any hopes of an FEU comeback in the fourth quarter when Alyssa Villamor sunk in a trey to make it 41-30.
FEU had no answer for Ateneo’s dominance and a Katrina Guytingco basket in the game’s dying moments sealed a 52-34 victory for the Lady Eagles.
The Flores-coached squad shot 20 percent from beyond the arc and got 35.42 percent field goals. In contrast, FEU had 5.56 percent and 22.86 percent from those categories.
Flores shared, “I always tell the girls that even if our shots aren’t falling in, we have to find a way to win. Today we started everything on defense and that’s how we generated our offense. No matter how bad the shooting percentage was, it was the defense which on the game for us.”
Ateneo (3-5) shall face defending champions National University on October 15, 8:00AM at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City. On the other hand, FEU (2-6) will play University of the East on October 18, 8:00 AM at the FilOil Arena.
The Scores:
ADMU (54) – Go 19, Yam 7, Uy De Ong 5, Villamor 5, Tomita 5, Deacon 4, Cancio 3, Guytingco 2, Newsome 2, Moslares 2, Morelos 0, Veloso 0.
FEU (39) – Gerner 13, Capua 7, Arellado 4, Ventura 4, Jumuad 4, Ouano 3, Balleser 2, Okunlola 2, Mamaril 0, Quiapo 0, Abat 0, Payadon 0.
Quarterscores: 8-4, 22-16, 34-28, 54-39.
