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| The Ginebra Kings seem to be shifting into high gear as the 2011 PBA Philippine Cup gets into the deep waters. |
BGY. GINEBRA KINGS over ALASKA ACES, 85-77
Brgy. Ginebra knows it can beat its opponents with lights-out shooting. It can play tough defense too. On this particular night, both facets of the Kings' game aligned, which proved enough to thwart an attempt by the Alaska Aces to turn the game around for a victory that kept the former back on track.
Nino Canaleta provided both X factors by scattering four triples to finish with a game-high 21 points while coming through with enough defense on the other end courtesy of a team-high 8 rebounds and a block to lead the most popular ballclub in the land to its fifth victory in as many losses.
At the end of their second meeting, the Kings torched the Aces with 11 triples including 6 by the exciting guard troika of Mike Cortez, JC Intal and Jayjay Helterbrand, who went on to score 13, 12 and 10 markers, respectively.
Bgy. Ginebra 85 - Canaleta 21, Cortez 13, Intal 12, Helterbrand 10, Mamaril 9, Villanueva 7, Caguioa 7, Wilson J. 2, Wilson W. 2, Tubid 2.
Alaska 77 - Thoss 13, Custodio 12, Reyes 11, Baguio 11, Dela Cruz 11, Tenorio 10, Baracael 5, Eman 2, Bugia 2, Salamat 0.
QS: 21-23, 42-46, 66-65, 85-77
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| Mac Baracael's on-again-off-again game continues to hurt the Aces' chances. |
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| Tony dela Cruz's stingy defense on Ronald Tubid fails to help Alaska snatch the win. |
MERALCO BOLTS over BARAKO BULL ENERGY, 83-75
Ageless Asi Taulava turned back time and came through with a mammoth performance as Meralco downed Barako Bull to leap to solo fourth spot in the PBA Philippine Cup.
Mark Cardona fired 17 points while Gabby Espinas, Solomon Mercado and Mark Isip chipped in 16, 12 and 10, respectively.
Taulava, who turned 38 this year, however, played the biggest as he came through with monster numbers of 10 points and his conference high 17 rebounds as the Bolts nailed their seventh win against four losses to get solo 4th in the standings.
Meralco 83 - Cardona 17, Espinas 16, Mercado 12, Isip 10, Taulava 10, Lanete 5, Borboran 4, Omolon 4, Macapagal 3, Hugnatan 2, Yee 0.
Barako 75 - Miller 14, Pennisi 14, Arboleda 13, Pena 12, Najorda 7, Ababou 5, Aquino 4, Salvador 4, Artadi 2, Salvacion 0, Allado 0.
QS: 21-18, 37-33, 61-50, 83-75
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| Gabby Espinas checks for blood as Leo Najorda crumples on the floor after their head-on collision. |
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| Mac Cardona and Sunday Salvacion share a sweet moment amidst the heated action. |
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| Jondan Salvador failed to prevent Asi Taulava from having an awesome double-double. |
POWERADE TIGERS over SHOPINAS.COM CLICKERS, 102-84
Rookie Marcio Lassiter and Doug Kramer combined for 15 of Powerade’s 34 points in the third quarter, and the Tigers broke away from a close first half to win pulling away, whipping Shopinas.com and applying a tremendous amount of life in their playoff hopes.
Kramer had 8 points – six coming in a 12-2 run early in the third quarter – and Lassiter poured in 7 as the Tigers outscored the Clickers 34-21 in the period on the way to snapping a four-game losing streak. Powerade now has a 4-7 (win-loss) record, a full game ahead over Alaska in the race for the final spot in the quarterfinal round.
Lassiter finished with 21 points, eight assists and seven rebounds, and Kramer collected 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Tigers, who, according to Perasol, will now have to go through the proverbial eye of the needle to make it to the next round since Powerade still has a tough schedule ahead. Gary David added 16 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the field while top draft pick JV Casio contributed 8 assists.
James Sena, another rookie, paced the Clickers with 19 points and 11 rebounds, and Elmer Espiritu, Paul Escobal, and Paolo Hubalde each added 12 points.
Powerade 102 - Lassiter 21, Kramer 17, David 16, Cruz 9, Antonio 9, Adducul 8, Casio 6, Crisano 6, Anthony 5, Vanlandingham 3, Lingganay 2, Martinez 0, Allera 0.
Shopinas.com 84 - Sena 19, Espiritu 12, Escobal 12, Hubalde 12, Sison 7, Menor 5, Duncil 4, Daa 4, Ritualo 4, Jazul 2, Se 2, Canta 1, Bagatsing 0, Aquino 0.
QS: 28-28, 50-43, 84-64,102-84.
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| Alex Crisano gets shackled by no one else but the referee. |
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| Jojo Duncil and JR Aquino sandwich Sean Anthony. |
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| Rookie James Sena rises to try and block this fastbreak lay-up. |
B-MEG LLAMADOS over RAIN OR SHINE ELASTO-PAINTERS, 102-100
B-Meg squandered an early 21-point lead, but hung tough in a battle at the finish, stretching its streak to five games with a win over Rain or Shine. It boiled down to execution down the stretch and the Llamados prevailed with PJ Simon delivering the winning basket from beyond the arc with 52 ticks left.
Simon himself stood in front of Paul Lee as the prized Rain or Shine rookie made the final attempt for his team to salvage the game. Simon delivered clutch plays for the Llamados, preserving James Yap’s personal conference high of 32 points.
The two sweet-shooting wingmen combined for 6-of-10 three-point shooting and a total of 48 points as the Llamados marched on and caught up with the Elasto Painters and the Meralco Bolts at third place at 7-4.
Lee paced the Elasto Painters with 21 points that went with 4 assists, 3 rebounds and one steak.
B-Meg 102 - Yap J. 32, Simon 16, Barroca 14, Urbiztondo 11, Raymundo 11, Pingris 10, De Vance 3, Reavis 3, Yap R. 2, De Ocampo 0.
Rain or Shine 100 - Lee 21, Buenafe 12, Matias 10, Rodriguez 9, Arana 9, Tang 8, Norwood 7, Belga 7, Chan 6, Quinahan 6, Cruz 4, Ibanes 1.
QS: 30-13, 51-49, 79-77, 102-100
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| Tim Cone was on the ball as the Llamados continued their win streak. |
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| PJ Simon beats Jireh Ibañes to the leather. |
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| Jeff Chan is funneled into the heart of B-Meg's tight defense. |
PETRON BLAZE BOOSTERS over MERALCO BOLTS, 76-75
Arwind Santos knocked in the go-ahead shot then helped Denok Miranda stop Macmac Cardona in the ensuing play as Petron Blaze squeaked past Meralco in their out-of-town showdown at the Naga City Coliseum.
The Boosters squandered an 11-point lead at the start of the fourth quarter but hung tough in a battle at the finish as they stayed on a roll and closed in on the front-running Talk n Text Tropang Texters (8-1) with eight wins against three losses.
Santos churned out a double-double game with 23 points and 11 rebounds and was right there to put in big plays at endgame as the Boosters notched a fifth straight win in the Phoenix Fuel-sponsored road game.
Petron 76 – Santos 23, Cabagnot 13, Tugade 10, Yeo 9, Ildefonso 8, Miranda 6, Reyes 5, Baclao 2, Agustin 0, Sharma 0
Meralco 75 – Cardona 18, Lanete 14, Mercado 11, Taulava 7, Espinas 6, Macapagal 5, Borboran 4, Isip 4, Omolon 4, Hugnatan 2, Faundo 0, Timberlake 0, Yee 0
QS: 23-19, 43-38, 64-53, 76-75
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| Arwind Santos was his usual awesome self as the Blazers continues to roll against the Bolts. |
POWERADE TIGERS over TALK N TEXT TROPANG TEXTERS, 131-96
Powerade finally broke Talk N Text's long-time spell and got an additional bonus in the process. Gary David scored 27 points in leading a slew of Tigers who came up big in a win that further stoked their drive for a quarterfinals slot in the PBA Philippine Cup.
The Tropang Texters just had a fresh addition to their growing injury list, but there was still no tempering the Tigers' celebration following their second straight win that was fashioned in the most emphatic fashion. The Tropang Texters' cause readily looked bleak when Jared Dillinger did not suit up due to a left heel injury and joined Jimmy Alapag, Ryan Reyes and Aaron Aban and Ali Peek in the sidelines.
Kelly Williams scored 18 points and four other Talk ‘N Text players wound up with double figures, but they and the rest of the 13-man crew coach Reyes fielded could not keep pace with the Tigers' fiery surges from midway in the opening quarter on. Typifying TNT's bad shooting night was Ranidel de Ocampo going scoreless. In the end, it was the former Mobiline franchise's worst defeat since getting blasted by Purefoods, 73-110, in the 1998 Commissioner's Cup.
Marcio Lassiter added 19 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists while Sean Anthony, JV Casio and Doug Kramer each had at least 13 points. The biggest surprise of the game was Romel Adducul, 35, who wound up with 10 points, 8 rebounds and 3 feeds.
Powerade 131 - David 27, Lassiter 19, Anthony 17, Casio 14, Kramer 13, Adducul 10, Cruz 9, Crisano 7, Vanlandingham 6, Antonio 4, Martinez 3, Lingganay 2, Allera 0.
Talk N Text 96 - Williams 18, Castro 15, Carey 15, Oreta 14, Fonacier 12, Aguilar 9, Weinstein 7, Gamalinda 6, Raymundo 0, Membrere 0, Alvarez 0, De Ocampo 0, Lao 0.
QS: 27-18, 61-35, 95-70, 131-96
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| Even Kelly Williams couldn't stop Gary David from catching fire as the Tigers disposed of the Texters. |
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| Rommel Adducul gives Jayson Castro's arm the twist to typify Powerade's dominance. |
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| Harvey Carey slumps to the floor in frustration as the Texters continue to struggle with a depleted roster. |
BARAKO BULL ENERGY over RAIN OR SHINE ELASTO-PAINTERS, 106-102
Mick Pennisi and Dylan Ababou checked their personal slumps and Barako Bull got back on track, topping Rain or Shine. Pennisi and Ababou combined for 6-of-10 three-point shooting and a total of 43 points as Barako played with a newfound energy and confidence to snap a three-game losing skein.
Pennisi knocked in 4 triples and wound up with a total of 22 points – his biggest output in four seasons. Ababou added two treys and a total of 21 points, after making only two in the last two games.
Barako 106 - Pennisi 22, Ababou 21, Miller 16, Seigle 14, Allado 11, Salvacion 6, Arboleda 5, Pena 5, Gatumbato 3, Aquino 2, Artadi 1.
Rain or Shin 102 - Lee 24, Chan 21, Quinahan 14, Rodriguez 12, Matias 10, Belga 6, Arana 6, Tang 4, Norwood 3, Cruz 2, Buenafe 0, Ibanes 0.
QS: 25-24, 49-48, 77-71, 106-102
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| Both Danny Seigle and Gabe Norwood smile to appeal the referee's call as the Energy tripped the Painters. |
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| Old rivals TY Tang and Paul Artadi renewed their backcourt battle. |
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| Yeng Guiao barks orders to his wards even as Rain or Shine tumbles down the standings. |
PETRON BLAZE BOOSTERS over ALASKA ACES, 90-85
It was not exactly a reprise of their first meeting, but Petron Blaze still came out on top through the skin of its teeth against Alaska. The Boosters repeated over the Aces to come closer to realizing a Top 2 finish in the eliminations of the PBA Philippine Cup.
Arwind Santos scored a game-high 24 points and combined with Danny Ildefonso and Denok Miranda for the biggest plays in the stretch that enabled Petron to unleash a decisive 7-0 windup.
It was the sixth straight victory by the Boosters, giving them a 9-3 win-loss slate overall. All that remains for the Boosters is to triumph over sister team Ginebra on Friday and against Talk N Text on Tuesday to secure at least a No. 2 finish and a twice-to-beat advantage in the quarterfinals.
Alaska absorbed its 9th loss in 12 outings and now finds itself on the brink of not getting past the elims for only the third time in the last 32 conferences and first time since the 2009 Fiesta Conference.
Petron 90 - Santos 24, Cabagnot 20, Miranda 14, Reyes 8, Yeo 8, Ildefonso 7, Baclao 4, Tugade 3, Guevarra 2, Doruelo 0, Agustin 0, Sharma 0
Alaska 85 - Thoss 19, Baracael 13, Tenorio 13, Custodio 10, Reyes 10, Baguio 10,
Bugia 6, Salamat 4, Eman 0
QS: 21-9, 39-38, 64-60, 90-85
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| Ato Agustin signals for tighter defense against the unpredictable Alaska Aces. |
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| Cyrus Baguio's flying kick hits nothing but air. |
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| Alex Cabagnot stretches to avoid the lengthy arm of Alaska's Jay-R Reyes. |
B-MEG LLAMADOS over TALK N TEXT TROPANG TEXTERS, 114-104
B-Meg kept in step with Petron Blaze with both stretching their streaks to six games to dislodge Talk n Text as tournament leader. James Yap followed up a 32-point game with a 27-point showing while Kerby Raymundo put in double-double numbers as the Llamados drubbed the Tropang Texters before a crowd of over
10,000 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
With their crippled lineup and all, the Texters gave a good fight before eventually yielding to the Llamados. B-Meg lost a 17-point bulge on Talk n Text’s third quarter onslaught, and the Llamados needed to regroup to overcome the Texters.
The returning Jimmy Alapag keyed Talk n Text’s third-quarter charge and was badly missed as he cramped out in the last four minutes of play.
B-Meg 114 - Yap J. 27, Raymundo 20, Urbiztondo 15, Simon 11, De Vance 9, Yap R. 9, Pingris 8, Reavis 8, Barroca 7.
Talk N Text 104 - Carey 25, Castro 18, Alapag 15, Aguilar 11, Williams 11, Weinstein 9, Fonacier 8, De Ocampo 7, Gamalinda 0, Oreta 0, Alvarez 0.
QS: 29-21, 53-42, 76-78, 114-104
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| Not even Jimmy Alapags return could propel the Texters back into the win column. |
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| James Yap's 27 markers led the Llamados' climb towards the top of the team standings. |
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| Marc Pingris is caught between the proverbial rock and hard place. |
Source: Game recaps were compressed and compiled from PBA.ph
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