Manila, Dec. 7 -- National University (NU) moved closer to retaining the UAAP Season 88 women's basketball title after beating the University of Santo Tomas (UST), 84-79, in Game 1 of the best-of-three finals series at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Saturday.

Angel Surada, Marga Villanueva, Kristine Cayabyab, and Marylene Solis delivered double-digit scores for the Lady Bulldogs, who showed their composure in the fourth quarter to end the Growling Tigresses' 13-0 winning run.

"We don't know how we got the win because Coach DA said that in the eliminations, UST was throwing a lot at us, so God helped us win. We just believed in the game plan and we just followed the coaches," Surada said.

Surada finished with 19 points, seven rebounds, f...