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| Danny "Lakay" Ildefonso exploded for his best game in recent memory to give the Boosters a commanding 3-1 series edge. (image by Paolo Papa/InterAKTV.com) |
PETRON BLAZE BOOSTERS over TALK N TEXT TROPANG TEXTERS, 85-82
Petron Blaze is inflicting Talk N Text much pain.
Spoilers of TNT’s grand slam dream in the previous conference, the Boosters are on the verge of foiling the Tropang Texters’ title-retention bid this time around.
Danny Ildefonso endured an injury, playing big as Petron Blaze beat out TNT in a gripping battle once again, eking out a win to move on the doorstep of the PBA Philippine Cup Finals. The two-time MVP winner put in his most productive game in four years, pouring in 22 points, including a lethal jumper that pushed Petron ahead to stay at 83-82 with 55.7 ticks lefts. Ildefonso scored 16 in the last 20 minutes, leading the Petron charge as they overcame a 10-point deficit at 40-50 to get the commanding 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series.
The Boosters can wrap it up either Friday, Sunday or Wednesday.
Chris Lutz put up a solid back-up job, capping his effort with a big hustle play that sent him to the stripe for two charities making it 85-82 with 9.3 ticks left. The Texters had a chance to send the game into overtime but Ranidel de Ocampo and Jimmy Alapag muffed a three-point attempt each in the waning seconds.
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| Ranidel De Ocampo and the rest of TNT imploded in the endgame once again. (image by Paul Ryan Tan/InterAKTV.com) |
Ildefonso, Lutz and Joseph Yeo carried much of the fight for Petron as Alex Cabagnot and Arwind Santos failed to deliver their usual numbers. Santos, Petron’s double-double machine, struggled for personal conference lows of 7 points and 2 rebounds.
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| Chris Lutz and the rest of Petron are just one win away from booking a set in the Philippine Cup Finals. (image by Paul Ryan Tan/InterAKTV.com) |
Ryan Reyes fired 17 points to make up for his crucial lapses in Game Three. The problem was that he suffered a wrist injury making him doubtful for the next game. Reyes, who had never hit double figures in the series, made 11 right in the first half in this game. The hard-nosed Fil-Am guard went 2-of-2 from the three-point area and 2-of-4 from the two-point zone, and the whole TNT team shot well as they enjoyed a 44-38 cushion at the half.
PBB 85 - Ildefonso 22, Lutz 13, Yeo 13, Cabagnot 8, Santos 7, Reyes 6, Sharma 6, Miranda 5, Tugade 3, Baclao 2.
TNT 82 - Reyes 17, De Ocampo 15, Castro 13, Dillinger 9, Peek 9, Fonacier 6, Williams 5, Carey 4, Alapag 3, Aguilar 1.
QS: 22-23, 38-44, 60-66, 85-82
Source: Game recap was compressed and compiled from PBA.ph
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