DEFENDING champions University of Santo Tomas opened their UAAP Season 87 women’s basketball campaign with a commanding 86-44 victory over the University of the East on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Karylle Sierba, a standout from the UST High School program, led the Tigresses with 18 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals. She was supported by Kent Pastrana, the Season 86 Athlete of the Year, who added 15 points, 5 rebounds, and 7 assists. Rachelle Ambos also impressed with 13 points, 13 rebounds, and 8 steals.

“We just stuck to Coach Haydee Ong’s plan. With Tantoy [Ferrer] gone, we knew we had to step up,” said Ambos, referring to last year’s Finals MVP who graduated. UST took a dominant 41-24 halftime lead and expanded it to 86-40 with just over two minutes left in the game.

Despite the win, Coach Ong emphasized the need to address turnovers, saying, “We started off excited, which led to unforced errors. We’ll need to fix that in the coming games.”

For the Lady Warriors, Rachel Lacayanga managed 11 points and 7 rebounds, while Kamba Kone contributed 8 points and 4 rebounds.

Adamson University defeated Far Eastern University, 76-63, in another matchup. A 13-2 run powered by Cheska Apag, Elaine Etang, and Kat Agojo gave Adamson a comfortable 53-39 lead. Despite a brief FEU rally, the Lady Falcons responded with a 12-2 surge to secure the win.

Coach Ryan Monteclaro acknowledged the nerves surrounding the first game but praised his team for making a strong opening statement.

Apag led Adamson with 17 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 steals.