UAAP: Clutch Delos Reyes bucket lifts La Salle to upset of NU

MANILA — De La Salle University completed a stunning 84-83 upset of National University to stay in the Final 4 race in the UAAP Season 89 women’s basketball tournament, Sunday at the Araneta Coliseum.

Eli Delos Reyes converted the biggest bucket of her career, scoring a fastbreak layup with 3.7 seconds left off a dime from Kyla Go to put the Lady Archers ahead for good.

It was La Salle’s first victory over the Lady Bulldogs since 2022, when the Lady Archers snapped their opponents’ historic 108-game winning streak.

“… This is a character win for us. We wanted the win really badly, and that’s why the basketball gods gave us this win,” said head coach Cholo Villanueva.

The seventh-running Lady Archers secured just their second win of the season, snapping a seven-game losing streak to improve to 2-8.

NU, meanwhile, absorbed its second consecutive defeat to fall into a tie for third place with Far Eastern University at 6-4, half a game behind second-running Adamson University (7-4).

With NU controlling the momentum for much of the contest, La Salle mounted its late fourth-quarter rally behind the efforts of Go and Bukky Ojo before Delos Reyes delivered the finishing blow.

Ojo also came up with a crucial defensive play in the closing seconds, heavily contesting Marga Villanueva’s three-point attempt with five seconds remaining to prevent NU from reclaiming the lead.

Go spearheaded La Salle’s offense throughout the contest, finishing with a game-high 32 points on 50 percent shooting while converting 19 of her 25 free-throw attempts.

Ojo, meanwhile, posted a monster double-double of 24 points and 24 rebounds in 39 minutes of action.

The Lady Archers will look to build on their momentum and make a late push in the Final Four race when they face archrivals Ateneo de Manila University at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday at the Big Dome.

For NU, Cielo Pagdulagan nearly recorded a triple-double with 21 points, nine rebounds, and seven steals. Karl Ann Pingol added 16 points and eight assists, while Kristine Cayabyab and Zaydhen Rosano chipped in 12 and 11 points, respectively.

The Lady Bulldogs will look to rediscover their winning form against the Adamson Lady Falcons at 12:00 p.m. on Wednesday, with the matchup carrying significant implications for the race for the second spot.

DLSU (84) – Go 32, Ojo 24, Lubrico 8, Dueñas 7, Anastacio 4, Villarin 3, Villapando 3, Delos Reyes 2, Evangelio 1, S. Dizon 0, Bacierto 0, Araza 0, Sunga 0, Teves 0, A. Dizon 0, Tenebro 0.

NU (83) – Pagdulagan 21, Pingol 16, Cayabyab 12, Rosano 11, Solis 8, Alba 4, Betanio 3, Garcia 3, Villanueva 3, Lapasaran 2, Alterado 0.

Quarterscores: 20-25, 45-53, 65-72, 84-83