Tigresses devour Lady Warriors for 7th win

MANILA, Philippines – University of Santo Tomas flat out dominated University of the East, 65-26, to take its seventh win in the UAAP Season 82 Women's Basketball Tournament, Wednesday at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion.

Just how dominant were the Tigresses? They limited the Lady Warriors to just five points in the opening frame before locking down UE to the tune of just two points in the second quarter.

As the dust settled, the UST defense forced UE to shoot a horrid 9-of-58 from the field, good for just a measly 16-percent clip.

Not helping the Lady Warriors' cause was them going just 5-of-17 from the stripe and them committing 36 turnovers, paving the way for the Golden Tigresses to enjoy a lead as much as 43 points in the game, 65-22, with 1:45 left.

"Yung playmaker nilang si (Jearzy) Ganade has been scoring in double digits, so yun yung kinailangan naming bantayan," said coach Haydee Ong said of the magnificent defensive outing UST had.

All but two players scored for the Golden Tigresses, with reigning MVP Grace Irebu leading the way with 12 points and 15 rebounds, to go with two steals.

Jeorge Panti added 11 markers, while Tacky Tacatac chipping in 10 markers on two treys.

The win lifted UST to a 7-2 slate to keep solo second and gain a one-game cushion over Far Eastern University in the standings.

"We're taking it one game at a time. Dikit-dikit kami. Hopefully, we will get one more win against FEU on Sunday," said Ong.

Princess Pedregosa led UE (1-8) with seven points and nine rebounds, as main scorers Ganade and Tin Cortizano were limited to five and three markers, respectively.

The scores:

UST 65 – Irebu 12, Panti 11, Tacatac 10, Portillo 8, Rivera 8, Callangan 4, Gandalla 4, Ferrer 2, Javier 2, Sangalang 2, Soriano 2, Casiano 0, Manuel 0.

UE 26 – Pedregosa 7, Terrinal 6, Cuadero 5, Ganade 5, Cortizano 3, Fernandez 0, Nama 0, Noquil 0, Ordas 0, Paule 0, Tinio 0.

Quarterscores: 22-5, 37-7, 47-16, 65-26.