With Nathalia Prado asserting her dominance in the lane, Adamson humbled University of the Philippines 67-57 yesterday in the UAAP Season 80 women’s basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena Arena.
Prado piled up 20 points and 11 rebounds while Jamie Alcoy dished out an all-around performance of 15 points, five steals, as many rebounds and four assists for the Lady Falcons who turned the game around behind a decisive 15-4 run in the third period.
It was the second straight victory and third overall for Adamson, tying idle Far Eastern University at fourth spot in the process.
“We took full control with that big run in the third quarter,” said Adamson coach John Kallos, referring to the Lady Falcons’ strong surge, capped by an April Cabug triple, that stretched a slim two-point lead to a 48-35 advantage with more than three minutes to play.
The Lady Maroons struggled to recover from then on as they trailed by as many as 18 points, leading to their seventh consecutive setback.
Backups Lou Ordoveza and Iris Isip combined for 24 points but UP sorely missed the production from its starters.
Defending three-time champion National University completed a seven-game sweep of the first round. Hot on NU’s heels are University of Santo Tomas and University of the East with 6-1 and 5-2 cards, respectively.
Ateneo and last year’s losing finalist La Salle, are tied from sixth to seventh spots with similar 2-5 slates. (Jerome Lagunzad)
The scores:
ADAMSON 67 – Prado 20, Alcoy 15, Rosario 9, Araja 5, Camacho 5, Cabug 5, Lacson 4, Tacitac 2, Aciro 2, Villanueva 0, Cacho 0, Gaite 0, Ramiliano 0.
UP 57 – Ordoveza 14, Isip, 10, Medina 8, Esplana 7, Cruz 5, Domingo 3, Lapid 3, Gatpatan 3, Pesquera 2, Ongsiako 2, Rodas 0, Tan 0, Viray 0, Bascon 0, Amar 0.
Quarters: 13-14, 31-25, 52-42, 67-57.