Adamson University rose to solo third in the UAAP Season 82 Women’s Basketball tournament after escaping Far Eastern University with a 61-59 win, Wednesday at the Quadricentennial Pavilion.
The Lady Falcons picked up back-to-back wins to rise to 8-4 — one-and-a-half games ahead of the Lady Tamaraws, who lost their second straight game.
“Our game plan was very simple eh. ‘Yung defense namin kailangang i-tighten namin,” said Adamson assistant coach Raymond Retaga. “Yung offense will come eh. Talagang nandiyan naman ‘yung opensa ng team.”
Mar Prado followed up her 40-point output last Sunday with 26 points and 10 rebounds.
Complementing her was Lhyn Bilbao, tallying 21 points and eight rebounds.
And the duo were pivotal in Adamson’s fourth-quarter rally.
Up by just three, 51-48, with exactly five minutes left, the Lady Falcons went on a 10-5 run capped by a Prado trey to gain a 61-53 cushion with 1:39 remaining.
Adamson’s defense limited FEU to just 30-percent shooting.
Clare Castro and Val Mamaril tried a late-game hijack, but the latter’s layup with 0.5 ticks left fell short.
After being limited to just two points in the first half, Castro scored 13 in the second half. She also hauled down 17 boards. Mamaril added 14 markers.
The Scores:
ADU 61 – Prado 26, Bilbao 21, Flor 12, Dampios 2, Anticamara 0, Araja 0, Catulong 0, Mendoza 0, Ornopia 0.
FEU 59 – Castro 15, Mamaril 14, Bahuyan 7, Quiapo 7, Jumuad 5, Adriano 3, Abat 2, Antiola 2, Delos Santos 2, Vidal 2, Villanueva 0.
Quarterscores: 12-6, 31-17, 49-39, 61-59