Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Tiebreaker Times

Basketball

National U squeaks past valiant UE to open title defense bid


Picking up from where they left off last year, reigning UAAP Women’s Basketball champions National University Lady Bulldogs commenced their Season 79 campaign with a 62-58 win over the University of the East Lady Warriors today at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

The win is the Lady Bulldogs’ 33 straight.

Queen Bulldog Gemma Miranda led the Lady Bulldogs with 18 points and was followed by Afril Bernardo and Ria Nabalan with 14 points apiece.

The Lady Bulldogs led as much as sixteen points at halftime. However, they slowly allowed the Lady Warriors to get back in the game. A Eunique Chan basket midway through the third quarter made it an eight-point ballgame.

UE then had momentum swing their way just before the final period as the Lady Warriors closed out the third quarter with a Love Sto. Domingo trey to cut NU’s lead to just seven points.

Amidst the threat of a potential UE comeback, Lady Bulldogs head coach Patrick Aquino remained calm on the bench. Aquino, though, felt that the Lady Bulldogs needed to be more aggressive.

“Medyo nag-rerelax pa,” noted the Lady Bulldogs mentor.

NU were able to lead as much as eleven points after the fourth quarter commenced. That should have been enough, but UE refused to throw the white towel as Ruth Tacula almost single-handedly brought back the Lady Warriors back in the game when her free throw cut the Lady Bulldogs’ lead to seven points.

Baskets from Sto. Domingo and Chan then made the prospect of a UE comeback a real possibility as NU were left reeling as their advantage was cut to just five points. Afterwards, a Chan basket brought UE closer as it was 58-61 with roughly a minute left in the game.

#ReadMore  ONE: Carlos Alvarez puts forth another dominant showing at Lumpinee

In the end, though, NU displayed their end-game composure as UE failed to hit the shot from beyond the arc which would have tied the game. Monique Del Carmen was fouled and she converted one freebie to secure a 62-58 victory at UE’s expense.

“It’s probably the level of confidence was so high after the first half and then siguro they tend to relax,” stated Aquino after the game who added that he had faith in his players when it comes to clutch periods. “You know naman kasi last year they dominated every game. They tend to go back. Sabi ko nga you don’t have to go back. You just have to learn from last year.”

The next game of the Lady Bulldogs (1-0) will be against the Ateneo de Manila University Lady Eagles (1-0) on Sunday, September 11 at 10:00AM at the Araneta Coliseum. The Lady Warriors (0-1), on the other hand, play a day earlier against the University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigresses (0-1) on September 10 at 8:00AM.

The Scores:

NU (62) – Miranda 18, Bernardino 14, Nabalan 14, Itesi 6, Animam 4, Del Carmen 3, Ceno 3, Camelo 0, Layug 0, Harada 0.

UE (58) – Tacula 18, Chan 14, Sto. Domingo 13, Requiron 5, Francisco 4, Ramos 2, Mendina 2, Gayacao 0, Relova 0, Cortizano 0.

Quarterscores: 21-14, 45-29, 51-44, 62-58.

Written By

Lorenzo's a frustrated author who knows a thing or two about Football and Basketball. Went all green from Ortigas to Taft. Supports Liverpool FC, FC Bayern Munich and the Alaska Aces


You May Also Like

3x3 Basketball

Uratex proudly claimed the title of the inaugural champion of the Women’s PBA Invitational. Shanda Anies and Eunique Chan took turns torching Gilas B...

3x3 Basketball

Philippine Navy-Go For Gold handed Uratex its first defeat in the Women’s PBA 3×3 Invitational, staging a remarkable 18-17 comeback on Monday. The Lady...

3x3 Basketball

Titans and Zoos Tokyo were the latest teams to secure their spots in the quarters of the Manila Hustle 3×3 Season 2 after dominating...

3x3 Basketball

Bigger and better are the promises of Manila Hustle 3×3 in its second season as it welcomes 16 teams to the fold this weekend...

3x3 Basketball

Uratex Dream took care of business in its double-header assignment on Monday, moving one win away from a sweep of the elimination round in...

3x3 Basketball

Uratex Dream and Navy-Go for Gold had impressive starts in the PBA Women’s 3×3 Invitational at Ayala Malls Circuit Makati, securing victories in both...

Basketball

Aris Dimaunahan took the blame after National University’s eight-peat bid in the UAAP Season 86 Women’s Basketball Tournament was foiled last Wednesday. The Lady...

Basketball

As University of Santo Tomas celebrated its first title in the UAAP Women’s Basketball since UAAP Season 69 at the hardcourt of the SMART...

Advertisement