University of the Philippines bounced back from a demoralizing loss against De La Salle University by taking a 64-56 win over host Adamson University in the UAAP Season 85 Women's Basketball Tournament, Wednesday at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion in Espana, Manila.
The win is the Fighting Maroons' first against the Lady Falcons since Bea Daez and company barged into the win column of Season 78 to start a four-game winning run.
Moreover, the victory snapped UP's seven-game losing streak since Season 82.
"May mga breaks of the game lang na napunta sa 'min, and we're lucky down the stretch. There's a lot to improve, but I'll take any win at this point in time," said Maroons' head coach Paul Ramos.
"It was not a dominating win, but it was a win that we know we can win again in the coming games," he added.
With Adamson hot on their tails, Christie Bariquit drilled a top-of-the-key trey to extend UP's lead to seven at 53-46 with 6:29 left in the game.
Cris Padilla answered back with a triple of her own and then split her free throws to keep the Lady Falcons in the game, 50-55, with 4:09 remaining in the game.
Buckets from Shanina Tapawan and Maian Domingo, though, extended the Maroons' lead back to nine, 59-51, before Rhea Sanchez sank a dagger triple with 2:07 left, virtually sealing the win for UP with 2:07 still in the game clock.
Kaye Pesquera paced UP with 15 points on 50 percent shooting, to go with five rebound, while Sanchez ended with 11 markers on a 3-of-5 clip from behind-the-arc including the dagger trey in the stretch.
Dindy Medina was solid for the Lady Falcons with 15 points, four rebounds, and one assist. Rose Ann Dampios ended with 11 markers, two assists, and one board.
UP will shoot for a winning streak when it takes on Far Eastern University on Saturday at 10 a.m., while Adamson will try to bounce back against University of the East earlier in the day at 8 a.m. Both matches will be played at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
The Scores:
UP 64 - Pesquera 15, Sanchez 11, Bariquit 9, Maw 8, Vingno 6, Domingo 4, Tapawan 4, Lozada 3, Jimenez 2, Larrosa 2, Gonzales 0, Rivera 0, Lara 0.
Adamson 56 - Medina 15, Dampios 11, Flor 8, Adeshina 7, Padilla 6, Ornopia 4, Alaba 3, Catulong 2, Etang 0, Meniano 0, Agojo 0, Tano 0, Dumelod 0, De La Cruz 0, Carcallas 0, Alaba 0.
Quarterscores: 20-11, 28-25, 46-43, 64-56.