UAAP: UST women near first-round sweep after roaring past La Salle

MANILA — Defending champion University of Santo Tomas is one step closer to a first-round sweep in the UAAP Season 89 women’s basketball tournament.

This, after the Growling Tigresses came alive in the second half on their way to an 83-62 rout of De La Salle University, Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

The result extended UST’s perfect start to six games, while the Lady Archers absorbed their fourth consecutive loss to fall to 1-5.

Despite the comfortable win, UST head coach Haydee Ong was far from satisfied as La Salle had remained within striking distance in the first half, 28-27, off a Bukky Ojo bucket. A 10-0 run by the Tigresses stretched the defending champions’ lead to 11, 38-27. 

Karylle Sierba then drilled a three-pointer to keep La Salle at bay before halftime, as UST took a 40-32 lead into the break.

La Salle struggled to score in the opening three minutes of the third quarter before Aiesha Dizon converted her free throws to trim the deficit to nine, 44-35.

UST gradually pulled away in the third quarter, with Sierba pouring in 11 points to help the Growling Tigresses maintain control. Agatha Bron then knocked down a triple before the buzzer to give UST a 62-49 advantage heading into the final period.

The Growling Tigresses delivered the finishing blows early in the fourth quarter, unleashing a 10-3 run capped by Oma Onianwa’s putback layup to extend their lead to 21, 73-52, with just over five minutes remaining.

“We have to be consistent on both ends of the court. If medyo malas kami sa opensa, at least dapat hindi rin nakaka-score ang kalaban namin,” said Ong. “Every quarter, we wanted na dapat palagi kami ‘yung lamang and hopefully ma-sustain ng mga girls ’cause all the teams ay tina-target kami so we have to do better every single game.”

Four UST players scored in double figures, led by Sierba, who finished with 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting, nine rebounds, two assists, and two steals. CJ Maglupay added 14 points and four steals.

Brig Santos chipped in 12 points and four assists, while Bron contributed 11 points and three assists.

Meanwhile, Nigerian big  Ojo paced the Lady Archers with a double-double of 21 points and 12 rebounds. Kyla Go added 10 points, three rebounds, and two assists.

La Salle will look to snap its losing streak against National University on Saturday, Oct. 24, at 12 p.m. at the Blue Eagle Gym.

UST 83 – Sierba 20, Maglupay 14, Santos 12, Bron 11, McAlary 9, Onianwa 7, Dajao 5, Ambos 3, C. Danganan 2, Relliquette 0, Pescador 0, K. Danganan 0, Boteros 0, Tate 0.

DLSU 62 – Ojo 21, Go 10, A. Dizon 9, Barcierto 6, Villapando 6, S. Dizon 4, Lubrico 2, Villarin 2, Sunga 1, Anastacio 1, Araza 0.

Quarterscores: 16-12, 40-33, 62-49, 83-62.