Mighty NU destroy UE by 84 points in Season 85 opener, inch closer to 100th straight win
MANILA, Philippines (Updated 12:19 p.m.) — New season, same dominance for the NU Lady Bulldogs.
After three years of UAAP hiatus, the six-time defending champions picked up right where they left off with an absolute masterclass over the UE Lady Warriors, 131-47, to begin their UAAP Season 85 campaign at the Mall of Asia Arena on Sunday.
NU, who now parade a new coach in Aris Dimaunahan after multi-titled tactician Pat Aquino stepped down from his post earlier this year, hardly broke a sweat against UE whom they dominated form the get-go for their 97th straight win — which also set a new record of points scored in a UAAP women's basketball game.
Riding the hot hands of Camille Clarin and Angel Surada in the opening salvo, NU gained a 27-point advantage after 10 minutes of play, 38-11.
But a 25-0 run for the Lady Bulldogs to begin the second quarter was what did UE in as they zoomed ahead by 55 points, 68-13, at the halftime break.
The Lady Warriors only scored two points in the whole second salvo.
Despite their already insurmountable lead, the Lady Bulldogs continued to step on the gas pedal on offense as they continued the onslaught.
The Lady Bulldogs breached the century mark in scoring with 1:35 left in the third quarter.
Clarin paced the Lady Bulldogs with 22 points on 7-of-10 shooting. She also had seven rebounds, four assists and two steals.
Karl Pingol added 16 points while Kristine Cayabyab contributed 14 markers.
All NU players fielded in the game scored at least two points in the dominating victory.
In his debut game as head coach, Dimaunahan simply relished the return of women's basketball in the UAAP, as the tournament's first edition since 2019.
"We're just happy na bumalik na yung basketball for women's and ang tagal namin hinintay, I want to congratulate the girls for starting this season with a win, with a convincing win. Obviously, the ladies are raring to compete and it showed kanina na talagang they are hungry for competition and again, congratulations to all of them." he said.
NU seeks for win No. 98 when they face the Ateneo Blue Eagles on Wednesday, October 5, at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion.
Meanwhile, UE will seek to bounce back from the sorry loss against the FEU Lady Tamaraws also on Wednesday.
In the second game, LJ Miranda scored the game winning triple for the Ateneo Blue Eagles as they edged the FEU Lady Tamaraws, 67-64.
WATCH: Lj Miranda scores the game winner for Ateneo to give them a 67-64 victory over FEU
— Luisa Morales (@mluisamorales_) October 2, 2022
She broke the deadlock with 18.2 seconds left in the game | @StarSportsHub @PhilstarNews #UAAPSeason85 pic.twitter.com/AjfwCfcuTY
After squandering a 14-point lead, the Blue Eagles needed to fend off a pesky Tamaraws side. Miranda scored on a corner three-pointer to break a 64-all deadlock with 18 seconds left on the clock.
Miranda finished with 17 points to pace Ateneo to victory. Veteran Jhazmin Joson added 14 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, and three steals.
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