The Express ended their season on a bright note,
while the Tropang Texters nearly broke into the 2013 PBA Governors’ Cup
Quarterfinals after pushing Ginebra to a rubber match, where the Kings
eventually prevailed.
 |
| LA Tenorio hit the big shots that pushed Ginebra into the 2013 PBA Govs' Cup quarterfinals. |
In Sunday’s opener, Air21 surprised Alaska, 121-107.
I love how, despite being out of the running for a quarterfinals berth, the
Express still managed to pull a W out of this one. They shot 61% from the
field, 59% from beyond the arc, and had 6 guys in double-figures, all led by
Zach Graham's mighty 27 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block.
It's a pity we won't see much more of the prolific former Mississippi standout.
Former DLSU guards Simon Atkins and Joseph Yeo shot
the lights out here, combining for 8 triples and 15/24 shooting from the field.
Both former Green Archers paired up for 43 points to backstop Zach Graham's
sublime production. This especially surprising for Yeo, since he has been
riding the pine for much of the season. Hey, maybe coach Franz Pumaren knows
something we don't, eh?
This is definitely not the way Alaska wanted to end
their elims campaign. The Aces had a chance to maybe get into the top four, but
this loss just bumped them permanently to the bottom half of the quarterfinals.
If the Aces get eliminated in their first knockout game, then they will
probably look back at this game with much regret.
In the main game, Talk N Text overcame Ginebra,
113-99, and bought more time for itself this conference. The Gin Kings, meanwhile,
are suddenly in danger of getting eliminated. Courtney Fells was great in this
one, shooting 11/21 from the floor, but he did cough the ball up 7 times. The
locals stepped up, too, with Harvey Carey, Ali Peek, Jimmy Alapag, Larry
Fonacier, and Jayson Castro all scoring 11 or more points.
Ginebra lost the battle of the boards and shot just
12% from rainbow country. The Kings' local frontline -- Billy Mamaril, WIlly
WIlson, Rico Maierhofer, Kerby Raymundo, anc Chris Ellis totaled just 14
rebounds in all. Meanwhile, LA Tenorio, Mark Caguioa, and Mac Baracael combined
to shoot 2/14 from three-point land. Ugh.
On the other end, Harvey Carey turned back the clock
and put on a great performance here, scoring 18 points on top of 11 rebounds, 2
steals and a block as TNT dominated down low. Carey shot 7/10 from the field,
made all but one of his free throws and was just super efficient against the
Kings. If coach Norman Black can pull out another Carey-ish surprise tonight,
then TNT should have a good chance of barging into the quarters!
In the ensuing rubber match that happened last night,
Ginebra held off a spirited Talk N Text squad, 110-102. LA “The Lieutenant”
Tenorio stepped up for the Gin Kings anew, stifling his former Gilas teammates'
hopes of crashing the quarterfinals. Tenorio was magnificent in the clutch,
hitting the big shot that deflated TNT's spirited second half run and, in the
process, sending Ginebra to a quarterfinals match-up with sister team, Petron
Blaze. Tenorio was flawless form the line, too, hitting all 11 of his freebies.
He ended up with a sublime double-double -- 24 points, 10 assists, 6 rebounds,
and 3 steals.
After several lackluster games, Chris "Air
Force" Ellis took off in a big way against the Texters here. The
Fil-American swingman unloaded 19 points, including 3 triples, while also grabbing
12 rebounds. He played a very efficient 37 minutes for the Kings. Should he
continue waxing hot and being aggressive on both ends, then Ginebra might have
an outside chance of pulling the rug from under the Boosters in the next round.
TNT's performance this conference, save for the game
that enabled this knockout encounter to happen, was quite forgettable. Coach
Norman Black's boys just couldn't find their rhythm throughout the 9-game
elims, what with a handful of key guys only entering the scene midway through
the conference. It is worth noting, however, that Gilas sniper Larry Fonacier
stepped up in this match with his best output of the season -- 31 points on the
strength of 5 triples, plus 4 boards, and 6 dimes. It was all for naught,
though, as the Texters have gone fishing.
Game Recaps:
AIR21 over
ALASKA, 121-107
The Air 21 Express played the role of spoiler on
Sunday night, defeating Alaska, 121-107, at the Mall of Asia Arena to keep the
Aces out of a top four spot in the Governors’ Cup playoffs.
The loss dropped the Aces’ record to 4-5, in a tie
with Barako Bull and GlobalPort. Because of an inferior quotient, Alaska will
be seeded seventh in the quarterfinals, where it has to beat San Mig Coffee
twice to advance.
Air 21 ended its elimination round campaign at 3-6,
keeping alive its slim hope of getting a knockout match for the eighth seed.
The Express will only figure in a knockout if Talk ‘N Text defeats Ginebra by
22 points or more on Sunday.
“It’s too bad that our destiny right now is not in
our hands,” said Air 21 coach Franz Pumaren, who got a suprise package from
rookie guard Simon Atkins.
The former La Salle point guard scored a career-high
22 points for Air 21, making all six of his shots from beyond the arc. Pumaren
joked that he had been giving Atkins one-on-one shooting lessons prior to the
match.
“We had a good start because of the torrid shooting
of Simon,” said Pumaren of Atkins. “He showed that there’s not substitute for
hard work.”
Air 21 import Zach Graham scored 27 points, Joseph
Yeo had 22, while KG Canaleta finished with 16 for the Express, who shot a
shade better than 61 percent from the field.
That was enough to overcome the effort of Alaska
import Wendell McKines, who had 43 points and 16 rebounds in the losing effort.
A21 121 – Graham 27, Atkins 22, Yeo 21, Canaleta 16, Manuel
12, Custodio 10, Taulava 7, Sharma 4, Menor 2, Omolon 0.
ALA 107 – McKines 43, Baguio 18, Thoss 17, Abueva 15, Casio
12, Dela Cruz 2, Reyes 0, Jazul 0, Eman 0, Espinas 0, Hontiveros 0, Belasco 0.
QS: 35-28,
63-54, 90-83, 121-107
 |
| Asi Taulava and Gabby Espinas get ready to jostle for position down low. |
 |
| Calvin Abueva and the Aces end the elims on a sour note. |
 |
| A couple of beauties soaking up the PBA action. |
 |
| Joseph Yeo squares off against former UAAP teammate JV Casio. |
TALK N
TEXT over GINEBRA, 113-99
The Talk ‘N Text Tropang Texters turned back Barangay
Ginebra San Miguel on Sunday, 113-99, at the Mall of Asia Arena to force a
playoff for the final seat in the Governors’ Cup playoffs.
The win forced a triple tie among Talk ‘N Text,
Ginebra, and Air 21 for eighth place in the team standings at the end of the
elimination round, with the Tropang Texters and the Gin Kings duking it out in
a knockout match because of superior quotient.
Talk ‘N Text will have little time to celebrate the
victory, with the playoff match set on Monday at 7:15 p.m. at Cuneta Astrodome.
“We’re probably gonna enjoy this for about an hour,”
said Talk ‘N Text coach Norman Black, whose team snapped a four-game losing
streak at the most opportune time.
“We knew if we could win this game, we could live to
fight another day.”
The Tropang Texters enjoyed a good start, leading by
as much as 13 points, 78-65, early in the third period. But Ginebra came
roaring back to tie the game with a 14-1 run behind superstar guard Mark
Caguioa, who finished the game with 29 points.
The match was still tied at 85-all when a 7-0 spurt
gave the Tropang Texters the lead for good. Ginebra tried to rally back, but
Jimmy Alapag hit three shots from beyond the arc to put the game away.
“Those were really big threes down the stretch,” said
Talk ‘N Text coach Norman Black, who also praised the effort of forward Harvey
Carey. The Tropang Texters veteran finished with 18 points and 11 rebounds to
help Talk ‘N Text win the battle of the boards, 51-41.
Import Courtney Fells had 26 points for the Tropang
Texters, which saw five locals score in double figures.
Import Dior Lowhorn had 31 points to lead Ginebra, while
LA Tenorio finished with 18 points, 12 assists, eight rebounds, and four
steals.
TNT 113 – Fells 26, Carey 18, Peek 16, Alapag 15, Fonacier
12, Castro 11, Ferriols 8, De Ocampo 5, Anthony 2, Reyes R. 0, Aquino 0, Reyes
J. 0, Aban 0.
GIN 99 – Lowhorn 31, Caguioa 29, Tenorio 18, Baracael 7,
Helterbrand 6, Ellis 2, Maierhofer 2, Wilson 2, Mamaril 2, Labagala 0, Raymundo
0.
QS: 30-30,
62-54, 79-79, 113-99
 |
| Norman Black reacts in TNT's first game against Ginebra. |
 |
| LA Tenorio runs into the tough TNT defense. |
 |
| Jayson Castro coasts to the hole. |
GINEBRA over
TALK N TEXT, 110-102
LA Tenorio came through with the biggest baskets late
to carry Barangay Ginebra San Miguel to a 110-102 victory over Talk ‘N Text in
their Governors’ Cup knockout match on Tuesday at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.
The Gin Kings were staring at a furious Tropang
Texters rally that cut Ginebra’s 21-point lead to just three points. To make
matters worse, Ginebra’s leader Mark Caguioa fouled out with 2:53 left in the
game.
Tenorio, however, was unperturbed.
“Ako na ang bahala,” Tenorio told Caguioa before
scoring seven points in Ginebra’s 9-4 run to end the game and book a
quarterfinals spot against the top-seed Petron Blaze Boosters.
The cerebral point guard said he took Caguioa’s
absence as a cue to take over.
“It’s about time mag-take charge ulit ako,” said
Tenorio, noting how he and the rest of the Gin Kings stepped up when Caguioa
was injured in the Commissioner’s Cup to make a run to the finals.
Tenorio finished with 24 points, 10 assists, six
rebounds, and three steals to lead Ginebra to the playoffs. Import Dior Lowhorn
added 31 points and 10 rebounds while Chris Ellis was a surprise package for
the Gin Kings, posting 19 points and 12 rebounds.
Caguioa had 18 points and five rebounds before
fouling out.
Ginebra controlled the game early with a zone defense
that dared Talk ‘N Text to shoot from the outside. That allowed the Gin Kings,
who were playing in their third game in six days, to conserve their energy and
build on their advantage.
“Napaganda sa amin na na-postpone yung game
yesterday,” said Ginebra coach Ato Agustin, as the match was originally
scheduled on Monday before being moved because of bad weather.
Talk ‘N Text came roaring back in the third period
behind Larry Fonacier, who finished with a career-high 31 points, and import
Courtney Fells, who scored 19 of his 26 points in the period. The Tropang
Texters stayed within striking distance, but could not get over the hump as
they failed to make it to the quarterfinals for the first time in four years.
GIN 110 – Lowhorn 31, Tenorio 24, Ellis 19, Caguioa 18,
Mamaril 8, Wilson 4, Baracael 2, Aguilar 2, Helterbrand 2, Urbiztondo 0,
Maierhofer 0.
TNT 102 – Fonacier 31, Fells 26, Castro 14, De Ocampo 8,
Alapag 6, Ferriols 4, Carey 4, Peek 4, Anthony 2, Aban 2, Al-Hussaini 1, Reyes
2.
QS: 26-15,
57-41, 87-78, 110-102
 |
| Dior Lowhorn and Mark Caguioa helped lead the Kings past the Tropang Texters in their knockout match last night. |
Source:
Unless otherwise specified, game recaps were compressed and compiled from InterAKTV.
(Writing credit to Rey Joble)
Images: Images
are from InterAKTV. (Photo credit to Pranz Kaeno Billones and Paul Ryan Tan)
Tweet
0 Comment