It’s been twelve days since their last game, but the National University Lady Bulldogs cruised to a 74-40 victory over the University of the Philippines Lady Maroons in the UAAP Season 79 Women’s Basketball Tournament.
“It was a good win in such a way we had a long break,” commented NU mentor Pat Aquino after the game.
“Nag regroup kami nung second half. I just told them you need to relax not to hurry on those things. Parang gusto nila kasi isang tira namin, lamang agad ng sampu eh.”
Afril Bernardino led the defending champions with 16 points and 11 rebounds today at the SM Mall of Asia. Bernardino was followed by Jack Animam who produced 16 points and 10 rebounds while Gemma Miranda had 15 points and 12 rebounds.
The Lady Bulldogs started to show their dominance in the second quarter. A 7-0 run capped off by Aminam gave NU a 23-13 cushion. A few minutes later Bernardino then drove to the basket give the Lady Bulldogs a 29-15 lead as NU entered halftime with a 34-20 advantage above UP.
Come the third quarter, the Lady Bulldogs put their feet away from the pedals. Past halfway through the period, Miranda’s basket produced a 49-26 separation from the Lady Maroons.
NU ended the third quarter with a 57-26 scoreline at UP’s expense. “I just told them we can’t relax. We can’t exchange baskets with UP. They’re a hustle team. They make turnovers for us. We have a lot of turnovers. I told them you got to move the ball around,” Aquino explained.
The Lady Bulldogs maintained their pace in the fourth quarter as the Lady Bulldogs lead went as high as 35 points. In the end, NU showed a masterclass in basketball as it defeated UP 74-40.
A big reason for NU’s win was their rebounds. The Lady Bulldogs had 68 rebounds against the Lady Maroons’ 33. NU also shot 27.78 percent from beyond the arc while UP only had 17.65 percent.
NU’s (5-0) next game will be against Far Eastern University on October 5, 10:00AM while UP (1-5) shall also have FEU but on October 8, 8:00AM. Both games will be played in the Mall of Asia Arena.
The Scores:
NU (74) – Bernardino 16, Animam 16, Miranda 15, Itesi 6, Camelo 6, Nabalan 5, Harada 5, Malana 3, Taneza 2, Del Carmen 0, Ceno 0, Layug 0, Lopez 0, Rebadulla 0.
UP (40) – Esplana 9, Aliermo 7, Bautista 6, Pesquera 6, Ordoveza 6, Medina 4, Wong 2, Franco 0, Rodas 0, Tan 0, Cruz 0, Lapid 0, Gatpatan 0, Ongsiako 0, Villanueva 0, Viray 0.
Quarterscores: 12-8, 34-20, 57-26, 74-40
