DEFENDING four-time champion National University started off its road to a five-peat on top, turning back University of Sto. Tomas, 79-71 in the UAAP Season 81 women's basketball tournament Sunday at Mall of Asia Arena.
Ria Nabalan poured 26 points, seven rebounds, and five assists to guide the Lady Bulldogs to their 65th straight victory.
Reigning MVP Jack Animam remained a force to be reckoned with down low, unleashing 16 points and 25 rebounds, 17 of which coming on the offensive boards, to go with four blocks, while Rhena Itesi had 11 points and 17 rebounds.
The win moved NU closer to reaching the UAAP record of 73 straight wins set by the Adamson Lady Falcons in softball.
However, the victory left a lot to be desired in the eyes of coach Patrick Aquino as his girls slowed down after a 17-5 flurry, allowing the Tigresses to make a late run and give them a scare.
"More on gigil. They weren’t able to knock down their shots. Daming open triples. Two against twelve triples is a huge margin,” he said, as NU only shot 2-of-24 from downtown against UST's 12-of-22 mark.
Loraine Capilit paced the Tigresses with 19 points and seven rebounds, while Mali Irebu got 12 points and nine rebounds.
The scores:
NU 79 – Nabalan 26, Animam 16, Itesi 11, Pingol 10, Del Carmen 6, Camelo 5, Canuto 3, Ceño 2, Bartolo 0, Cac 0, Cacho 0, Fabruada 0, Goto 0, Harada 0, Layug 0.
UST 71 – Capilit 19, Irebu 12, Portillo 11, Tacatac 9, Rivera 8, Gonzales 4, Ferrer 3, Aujero 2, Sangalang 2, Magat 0.
Quarterscores: 17-5; 37-34; 58-47; 79-71.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph