Defense was the name of the game for the University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigresses.
The España school nullified the Ateneo de Manila University Lady Eagles’ offense en route to a 67-38 victory, Sunday afternoon at the Blue Eagle Gym in Quezon City.
This is the Growling Tigresses’ third straight win in the UAAP Season 81 Women’s Basketball Tournament.
Sai Larosa and Grace Irebu were the usual suspects who led UST, with 20 points and five rebounds and 13 points and 10 rebounds respectively.
“Sabi ko sa kanila na we have to think of our defense first before our offense. Every time we get a turnover from the other team, we have to convert that,” explained UST mentor Haydee Ong.
The Growling Tigresses started fast and imposed themselves early on against the Lady Eagles. With a 14-6 edge after the first quarter, a 20-8 run capped off by Larosa’s four unanswered points handed UST a 34-14 cushion by the 2:20 mark of the second quarter.
UST’s dominance extended well into the third period. Ateneo failed to find any rhythm after the break, while UST maintained their intensity on both ends of the floor. The UST offense was well on tune, highlighted by Irebu’s coast-to-coast drive at the 5:50 mark of the period that handed the Growling Tigresses a 45-20 lead.
“Si Grace siguro exhaustion. Medyo bad offense siya today, but we’ll let her have a good rest today para sa Wednesday’s game against La Salle,” added Ong.
Ong’s wards accrued a 49-24 lead by the end of the third period, and the Growling Tigresses simply ran through the motions with a quarter to spare. Reynalyn Ferrer’s put-back gave UST their highest lead at 61-28 with 6:31 left on the game clock.
Additionally, Loraine Capilit and Lon Rivera contributed 10 points each for the Growling Tigresses, while Ferrer seized nine boards.
Ong’s starters set the tone for the 67-38 win with 55 markers, unlike John Flores’ wards, who could only produce 21. The Growling Tigresses also scored 16 points off turnovers, had 40 inside points, and clinched 51 rebounds compared to the Lady Eagles’ eight, 22 and 32.
Such was the UST defense that no Ateneo players scored in double digits. Jhazmin Joson, Zoe Chu, and Cara Buendia all had six points. Ateneo only shot 28.81 percent from the field which was well below UST’s 43.86 percent.
“I’m not quite happy with the way we executed our offense but our defense held on. Siguro dahil na rin sa init. The pace of the game becomes slower this time. Hopefully when we go against La Salle, we can get back to our fast pace a little bit more,” closed the former national team coach.
UST (3-1) shall next face the De La Salle University Lady Archers on October 3, 8:00 AM at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City. On the other hand, Ateneo (2-3) will go up against the Adamson University Lady Falcons on October 6, 1:00 PM at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.
The Scores:
UST (67) – Larosa 20, Irebu 13, Capilit 10, Rivera 10, Aujero 8, Ferrer 2, Sangalang 2, Gonzales 2, Tacatac 0, Magat 0, Valera 0, Villar 0.
ADMU (38) – Joson 6, Chu 6, Buendia 6, Cancio 5, Nimes 4, Miranda 4, Go 2, Guytingco 2, Newsome 2, Moslares 1, De Dios 0, Gino-Gino 0, Payac 0, Quirante 0.
Quarterscores: 14-6, 36-16, 49-24, 67-38.
