San Mig Coffee survived a late scare in Game Four and
square its series, 2-2, against Petron Blaze in the Finals of the 2013 PBA
Governors’ Cup.
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| Mark Barroca stepped up big time as the Mixers won Game 4. |
The Mixers owe their lives to Mark Barroca as they
beat Petron, 88-86. The former FEU and Gilas Pilipinas standout stepped up to
hit big shots in the fourth quarter to save the day for San Mig Coffee, which
squandered a 28-point lead and survived a late rally by the Petron Blaze
Boosters. In all, Barroca drilled in a dozen points, including some big buckets
in the waning minutes of the match. He shot just 2/10 from the field overall,
but he made the baskets when they counted the most. At this stage, that's what
really matters anyway.
Coach Tim Cone enjoyed great production from almost
everyone he sent in to play. He used a tight 8-man rotation in this game, with
6 of those 8 scoring 11 points or more. Only Alex Mallari and Rafi Reavis
didn't break into the double-digit barrier here, while Marqus Blakely, Marc
Pingris, Mark Barroca, and PJ Simon each putting up AT LEAST a dozen markers
and five boards. That's the kind of all-around production San Mig Coffee will
need if they want to win any more games in this titular series.
When the Boosters shoot well from long range, they
are dominant. That didn't happen in this game. Petron went 4/22 from beyond the
arc, with Marci Lassiter making three of those four triples. The rest of the
team? 1/15 from deep. Oh, and as good as June Mar Fajardo was in this game --
20 points and 26 rebounds -- he shot just 2/8 from the line. It stands to
reason that had the Kracken shot better from the stripe (the rest of the team
went 12/14), the Boosters would probably be enjoying a 3-1 series lead at this
moment.
Game Recaps:
SAN MIG
COFFEE over PETRON BLAZE, 88-86
The San Mig Coffee Mixers squandered a 28-point first
half lead before waking up in the fourth quarter to notch a Game Four victory,
88-86, over the Petron Blaze Boosters on Friday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Mark Barroca broke the game’s final deadlock with
free throws with 21.9 seconds left to rescue the Mixers, who tied their PLDT
Telpad Governors’ Cup finals series at 2-2.
They had to go through the eye of the needle against
a Boosters team that never quit despite a hot start by San Mig Coffee, which
took a 33-13 lead after the first quarter.
The Mixers pushed the lead to 28 points, 49-21, as
Petron started off cold after a blowout win in Game Three.
But Petron came alive after the halftime break,
scoring the first six points of the third quarter to win the period, 34-15, and
cut the deficit to just four points.
The Boosters finally took the lead on a three-pointer
by Marcio Lassiter, 73-71, with 7:48 remaining in the game.
Petron still led, 77-73, when Barroca and Marc
Pingris teamed for an 9-2 run to put San Mig Coffee back in the driver’s seat.
The game was still tied at 83-all heading into the
dying minutes after a basket by Elijah Millsap.
Arwind Santos, who won Most Valuable Player honors
earlier in the evening, missed an open jumper, and Chris Lutz was called for a
foul on Barroca in the ensuing loose ball.
After Barroca’s free throws, Santos threw the ball
away on an inbound play. Petron was forced to foul Peter June Simon, who buried
his charities for an 87-83 advantage with 12 seconds left.
The Boosters were still not done yet, after Millsap
scored on an alley-oop off a timeout while getting fouled. The Petron import
made the bonus free throw to cut the Petron deficit to a single point, 87-86.
James Yap was sent to the line in the next play, but
the San Mig Coffee superstar muffed both his free throws. Millsap and Marqus
Blakely tangled for the rebound, resulting in a jumpball.
Blakely tapped the ball to Mallari, who was fouled
immediately. The rookie guard made his first free throw before missing the
second. Lassiter grabbed the rebound, but his prayer from beyond halfcourt
failed to hit the target, allowing San Mig Coffee to finally escape.
SMC 88 – Blakely 19, Pingris 15, Yap 14, Barroca 12, Simon
12, Devance 11, Mallari 4, Reavis 1.
PET 86 – Millsap 33, Fajardo 20, Lassiter 13, Santos 8, Lutz
6, Kramer 2, Miranda 2, Tubid 2, Deutchman 0, Lanete 0, Hubalde 0.
QS: 33-13,
52-29, 67-63, 88-86
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| June Mar Fajardo unloaded a huge game, but it was not enough for Petron to win. |
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| Marc Pingris held his own down low against Petron's big frontline. |
Season Awardees:
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| KG Canaleta of Air21 was named Most Improved Player. |
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| Alaska's Calvin Abueva was adjudged Rookie of the Year. |
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| Arwind Santos of Petron Blaze wins his first season Most Valuable Player award. |
PBA Mythical First Team:
Arwind Santos (PET
Ranidel De Ocampo (TNT)
Calvin Abueva (ALA)
Jayson Castro (TNT)
LA Tenorio (GIN)
PBA Mythical Second Team:
June Mar Fajardo (PET)
Sonny Thoss (ALA)
Marc Pingris (SMC)
Cyrus Baguio (ALA)
Alex Cabagnot (PET)
PBA All-Defensive Team:
Sonny Thoss (ALA)
Marc Pingris (SMC)
Arwind Santos (PET)
Marcio Lassiter (PET)
Gabe Norwood (ROS)
Sportsmanship Award:
JV Casio (ALA)
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 Paul Ryan Tan and Justin Gener)
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