The UST Growling Tigresses overwhelmed defending champion NU, improving to 13-0 and one win away from making the UAAP Season 88 women's basketball Finals.
University of Santo Tomas moved within striking distance of the UAAP Season 88 women’s basketball Finals after overpowering rival National University, 105-85, on Sunday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
The Growling Tigresses remain unbeaten at 13-0 and are now just one win away from completing an elimination round sweep—an achievement that would secure them an outright Finals berth and trigger the stepladder format.
UST will aim to complete the sweep on Wednesday against Far Eastern University at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, a game that will also finalize the Final Four lineup, giving Adamson University the last ticket.
“Alam naman natin na NU is the defending champion. This is a big win for us, 13-0, pero hindi pa tapos ‘yung trabaho. We still have one more game against FEU and we will stay on our track, focus on the goal at hand to have a sweep next week,” said UST head coach Haydee Ong.
Kent Pastrana set the tone early, coming off the bench to score 21 points in the first half alone, helping the Growling Tigresses take a 56-46 lead at the break.
UST then extended its advantage with a dominant third quarter, outscoring NU 27-17. Coi Danganan, Eka Soriano, and Brigette Santos provided support to Pastrana, pushing the lead to 83-63.
“‘Yung mindset ko lang today is I will do my best lang. Hindi naman sa gigil pero ginawa lang namin ‘yung best namin today,” said Pastrana, who finished with 26 points on six triples, seven rebounds, two assists, and one block.
Santos added 15 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, and three steals, while Soriano contributed 14 points, five rebounds, five assists, and three steals.
Danganan scored 12 points, and Oma Onianwa recorded a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
The victory dropped the Lady Bulldogs to 12-2, ending their 11-game winning streak. Their other loss came against UST in the first round, 76-62. NU will still enter the Final Four as the second seed.
Aloha Betanio and Ann Pingol led the charge for NU.
Betanio tallied 19 points, seven rebounds, and five assists despite five turnovers, while Pingol added 19 points, seven rebounds, three steals, two assists, and one block.
Tin Cayabyab contributed 16 points and five rebounds, and Marga Villanueva added 10 points.
The Scores:
UST (105) - Pastrana 26, Santos 15, Soriano 14, N. Danganan 12, Onianwa 10, Relliquette 9, Sierba 7, Ambos 6, Maglupay 4, Bron 2, Pineda 0, Dajao 0, Pescador 0, E. Danganan 0, Serrano 0, McAlary 0.
NU (85) - Betanio 19, Pingol 19, Cayabyab 16, Villanueva 10, Surada 9, Pring 4, Alterado 4, Medina 2, Canindo 2, Garcia 0.
Quarterscores: 26-20, 56-46, 83-63, 105-85.