THE ATENEO Blue Eagles took home a runner-up finish after relenting to the De La Salle University (DLSU) Lady Archers in the 2025 Union Sports League championship game, 65-71. The highly-contested bout took place earlier today, August 23, at the Barangay Batis Sports Complex in San Juan City.
Playing without marquee player Kacey Dela Rosa, the Blue and White sorely missed the forward’s presence as they struggled to score baskets early on. Alongside their offensive struggles, the Blue Eagles were overwhelmed by point guard Mica Camba, who utilized her transition game to garner buckets near the basket, 2-5.
Ateneo’s Kai Oani and Camille Malagar laboured against the relentless pressing of the Lady Archers, forcing tactician L.A. Mumar to regather his troops. Coming out of the huddle, the Loyola-based squad had difficulties containing the DLSU pick-and-roll as Camba set up her bigs for easy points near the basket, 11-15. Nearing the first buzzer, an Oani turnover paved the way for a Kyla Sunga bucket to end the first quarter, 12-19.
A cold spell gripped the opening minutes of the second canto as neither team managed to make a basket. The scoreless period was broken by an Oani three from the corner at the 8-minute mark, 15-19. Despite initial pushback from the Lady Archers, the Blue Eagles commenced a swift 7-0 run. With six minutes remaining, the run was capped off by an Oani pull-up jumper from the corner with six minutes left to knot the game at 24-all, forcing La Salle to call a timeout.
Exiting the huddle, the Blue and White’s momentum was swiftly halted by the opposition as La Salle quickly swung the tide in their favor. Deploying a relentless full-court press, the Lady Archers hounded the Katipunan-based squad with hurried looks and errant possessions, 28-34. La Salle’s offense clicked in transition, while Ateneo was left scraping for points mostly at the charity stripe. As the second quarter concluded, the Blue Eagles fell into a nine-point deficit, 31-40.
Using the halftime period to address defensive lapses, Coach Mumar changed his tactics, utilizing Sarah Makanjoula as a rim protector against the DLSU pick-and-roll. This strategy proved useful as the Blue Eagles strung together multiple defensive stops, which cut their deficit to four points, 41-45. Rookie Erica De Luna then provided two crucial three-pointers, including a basket from the corner to bring Ateneo within one possession, 47-49.
Following De Luna’s three, the ball game was a back-and-forth affair as both teams traded buckets with Lady Archer Tricia Mendoza utilizing her isolation moves to score easy points, 52-53. However, the Blue Eagles faced foul trouble near the end of the third quarter, leading Lady Archer BJ Villarin’s free throw at the buzzer to extend the deficit, 52-54.
Entering the final frame, the Blue and White failed to contain the Lady Archers early on, as Mendoza sank multiple shots from the paint to extend La Salle’s advantage to six, 52-58. Following a brief stretch of costly errors from both teams, Malagar and Cancio’s clutch baskets late in the game cut the deficit to two with three minutes left, 63-65.
In response, the Lady Archers once again executed a full-court press, to which the Blue Eagles still had no response. On the other end of the floor, La Salle managed to beat Ateneo off the dribble on multiple occasions, resulting in a 6-0 run that was insurmountable for the Katipunan-based squad, 63-71. Despite one last basket from Malagar on the fastbreak, the Blue Eagles ultimately conceded the contest, 65-71.
With this performance, the Blue Eagles end their United Sports League campaign with a silver medal finish. Now, they aim to regroup and prepare for their upcoming University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 88 campaign in September, carrying with them the experience they gained this preseason.
Quarter scores:
Ateneo-DLSU : 12-19, 31-40, 52-54, 65-71
