Defending champion National University rolled past Adamson, 69-51, for its second straight victory in the UAAP Season 88 women’s basketball tournament Wednesday at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.
Coming off a 95-58 rout of University of the Philippines, the Lady Bulldogs imposed control early behind Ann Pingol and Tin Cayabyab to build a 43-23 halftime lead-a cushion Adamson couldn’t erase.
The win pushed NU to solo third with a 3-1 record at the halfway mark of the first round.
‘We’re happy with the win, but this is probably not our best game,’ said NU coach DA Olan, whose team was outrebounded, 56-43. ‘There’s still a lot of room for improvement, especially in controlling the boards. We struggled again in that area.’
Adamson tried to rally in the third quarter behind Elaine Etang and Kem Adeshina, trimming the gap to 50-37. But Marga Villanueva buried back-to-back triples to restore a 19-point lead at 56-37.
The Lady Falcons made another push in the fourth before NU answered with three consecutive treys from Aloha Betanio, Marylene Solis, and Cayabyab to seal the win.
Pingol led NU with 17 points on 8-of-11 shooting, 11 rebounds, seven assists, four steals, and two blocks. Cayabyab added 13 points and six rebounds, while Villanueva chipped in 11.
Etang paced Adamson with 13 points, five rebounds, four steals, and two assists. Cheska Apag added 10 points as the Lady Falcons slipped to 1-3.
NU faces De La Salle University next on Sunday at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion, while Adamson meets University of the East on Saturday at the Ateneo Blue Eagle Gym.