Tigresses stave off Adamson rally, clinch Final Four berth
By Ernest Martin Tuazon
The UST Growling Tigresses (8–2) survived the late rally of the Adamson Lady Falcons (3–7) to snag the second Final Four slot in the UAAP Season 85 women’s basketball tournament, 73–66, Sunday morning, at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion.
Entering the final frame, the Tigresses held an 11-point cushion, 58–47. However, a late 11–3 heist from Adamson courtesy of triples from Leslie Flor and Rose Dampios trimmed UST’s lead to five with two minutes left, 68–63.
Tigress Joylyn Pangilinan withstood Adamson’s rally as she nailed the dagger triple to extend España’s lead to eight with 1:32 remaining, 71–63.
This was followed by MVP frontrunner Eka Soriano’s sixth steal and layup to move UST to its second conseuctive win, 73–63.
After an error-prone first frame that saw UST trail by six, the Tigresses blasted Adamson with an 18–3 run to hold a 10-point lead over the Lady Falcons at the half, 39–29.
Overall, the Tigresses committed 34 turnovers in the match, with 16 of these coming in the first half of play.
After shooting an abysmal 3-of-24 from beyond the arc in their 40-point blast of UE last Wednesday, UST shot an efficient 11-of-27 (40.7 percent) today.
Pangilinan led the way in the Tigresses’ eighth win with 17 points, four rebounds, three assists, and one steal.
Soriano, albeit having 12 of UST’s 34 errors, flirted with a quadruple-double as she posted 13 markers (6-of-9, 66.7 percent), eight rebounds, six assists, and six steals to her name.
The Tigresses look to fend off Ateneo anew in their second round matchup on Nov. 13, Sunday afternoon, at the same venue.
The Scores
UST (73) — Pangilinan 17, Soriano 13, Bron 11, Tacatac 9, Dionisio 8, Villasin 5, Santos 4, Villapando 4, Serrano 2, Araza 0, Ambos 0
AdU (66) — Adeshina 18, Dampios 16, Flor 13, Padilla 6, Alaba 5, Agojo 4, Catulong 2, Ornopia 2, Meniano 0, Etang 0
Quarter Scores: 12–18, 39–29, 58–47, 73–66
