Patriot cagers bow down to Sea Lions, Lady Patriots suffer first loss

Coming up short in their National Capital Region Athletic Association (NCRAA) stint, the DLSU-D cagers and cagebelles failed to thrash the Olivarez College (OC) Sea Lions and the Rizal Technological University (RTU) Lady Thunders in the preliminary round of the 23rd season of NCRAA at the Olivarez College gymnasium on January 25.

 

Photo by Brandon Ocenar

Finding their rhythm

After kneeling down in their first three games to the Philippine Merchant Marine School (PMMS), RTU and Philippine School of Business Administration (PSBA), DLSU-D Patriots continued to stumble with a one sided 52-70 loss against the Sea Lions.

The Patriots kept the gap close in the first quarter of the game, 13-18, but slowly collapsed in the second quarter when Jayboy Solis wrecked the  green-and-white team’s unstable defense, 24-39.

Keeping his head up, Patriot John Cantimbuhan led the Patriots to a swift 5-0 run, but the Sea Lions’ jump shots still dominated, ending the third canto at 35-56.

Attempting to post a late comeback, Patriot Luke Parcero garnered six points and consistently showed smooth passing skills, which was still not enough to relinquish the Sea Lions, as they ended the game on a high note, 52-70.

 

Photo by Brandon Ocenar

Wobbly start

Kicking of their NCRAA campaign, the DLSU-D Lady Patriots fell short in their clash against the RTU Lady Thunders, 42-50.

As the game commenced, the Lady Thunders quickly imposed five straight points from Angelica Aberto’s welcoming three-pointer and Jonalyn Halawig’s jump shots.

The Lady Patriots answered back with six straight points through the jumpers of Agatha Azarcon, Josele Jumawan, and Divine Diaz.

DLSU-D’s offense suddenly faltered due to RTU’s impressive trap defense to end the third canto in their side, 27-38.

With Jumawan and Azarcon showcasing their power, they led the Lady Patriot to put the game into a close 39-40 at 2:19 mark of the last quarter.

However, the Lady Patriots’ momentum faded away as they committed series of turnovers that pushed the Lady Thunders’ long bombs and jumpers, which wrapped up the game to 42-50.

DLSU-D Lady Patriots will encounter the PMMS Lady Mariners on January 29 at the RTU Gymnasium.