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| Jared Dillinger cruised past the Barako defense repeatedly on his way to 14 big points. |
*Unless otherwise specified, all images are by Paolo Papa/InterAKTV.com
TALK N TEXT TROPANG TEXTERS over BARAKO BULL ENERGY, 101-90
After successfully keeping the Philippine Cup last conference, Talk ‘N Text will now have a chance to defend the Commissioner’s Cup. The Tropang Texters made a return trip to the finals with a hard-earned triumph over Barako Bull in their do-or-die semifinals match Wednesday night.
Old reliables Jimmy Alapag and Ranidel de Ocampo delivered big down the stretch, picking up from where import Donnel Harvey left off. Alapag and De Ocampo’s clutch baskets in the final three and a half minutes helped weather the final uprising by Barako Bull, which pushed the favored Tropang Texters in the series.
Alapag’s three-pointer at the 3:39 mark of the fourth quarter shoved the Tropang Texters lead up to eight, 92-84. After Tubid made back-to-back shots to give Barako Bull a lease on life, De Ocampo hit a dagger four-point play to knock the spirit out of the Energy.
The Tropang Texters have made it to the championship round for the fifth straight time. The last time to team make five straight finals appearances was the San Miguel Beermen, who entered the championship round from the 2000 Commissioner’s Cup to the 2001 Governors’ Cup.
Talk ‘N Text raced to a big lead in the first half after getting 17 free throws attempts to Barako Bull’s three. Overall, Talk ‘N Text shot 30-of-38 from the line while Barako Bull shot just 15 overall.
But while the Tropang Texters threatened to blow the game open, Barako Bull kept the defending champions within arm’s reach, on the heroics of Gabe Freeman, Danny Seigle, and Ronald Tubid, who scored 22, 21, and 19 points respectively.
Import Harvey was a force all game long for Talk ‘N Text, scoring a series-high 29 points.
TNT 101 – Harvey 29, De Ocampo 18, Dillinger 14, Castro 14, Williams 9, Peek 7, Alapag 6, Fonacier 3, Reyes 1, Alvarez 0.
BBE 90 – Freeman 22, Seigle 21, Tubid 18, Allado 12, Miller 6, Salvador 4, Najorda 3, Arboleda 2, Pena 2, Weinstein 0, Pennisi 0.
QS: 25-27; 56-47; 77-74; 101-90
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| Mick Pennisi and the Energy went down for the count as the Texters threw the KO punch. |
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| TNT marches on to yet another PBA Finals appearance! |
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| Donnel Harvey was rock solid at the slot for the Texters. (image by Paul Ryan Tan/InterAKTV.com) |
Source: Game recaps were compressed and compiled from interaksyon.com/interAKTV
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