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| PHOTO courtesy of PBA |
GINEBRA BEATS ALASKA
ANTIPOLO -- Barangay Ginebra established control towards the end of the third quarter and roared on
to pull off an 83-72 win over the Alaska Aces in the 2011-12 PBA Philippine Cup at the Ynares Sports
Center here Sunday.
Nino Canaleta, Mark Caguioa and Jayjay Helterbrand stood at the forefront of Ginebra’s attack as
the Kings cut loose from a tight game in the third period and never let up to score the rousing
victory witnessed by a crowd of over 10,000 in the Antipolo City playing venue.
“It’s not as easy as it seems. We just caught them when they’re still on a
feeling-each-other-out stage. They had a coaching change and acquired new players. It will take time
for them to get accustomed to one another,” said comebacking Ginebra coach Siot Tanquingcen.
“Malakas pa rin ang materyales. Naka-tyempo lang kami talaga,” added Tanquingcen, prevailing
over new Alaska mentor Joel Banal.
Canaleta and Caguioa presided over Ginebra’s romp in the third quarter then Helterbrand had a
crucial seven-point explosion to step up the Kings’ breakaway in the fourth.
The Aces tried to mount a rally but the Kings were undaunted, unleashing a 9-3 run to all but settle
the outcome of the game at 81-66 with a little over a minute left to play.
The Kings eventually broke into the win-column in the season after dropping a close game versus the
Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, 93-94, on opening day.
Canaleta scored 17 points and pulled down seven rebounds while Caguioa tossed in 16 markers and
grabbed six boards for the Kings.
Rookie Mac Baracael made 17 points while Sonny Thoss had 16 points and 13 rebounds to pace the Aces.
Hardly making an impact for Alaska were top guns LA Tenorio and Cyrus Baguio.
Helterbrand, the 2009 MVP, concentrated on helping run the plays in the first three quarters then
got away with three lethal baskets at the start of the payoff period.
He had a medium-range jumper, a triple then a steal which he translated into a breakaway layup that
opened a huge 68-51 spread for the Kings.
Alaska had its last gasp as Baracael, Thoss and Bonbon Custodio teamed in a 12-2 tear.
Then Caguioa and Canaleta went for the kill to the delight of the Ginebra throng, making up majority
of the sellout crowd. The game drew the biggest gate attendance in the season thus far.
The two teams figured in a neck-and-neck battle in the first half ending at 34-32 in favor of
Alaska. (SB)
The scores:
Ginebra 83 - Canaleta 17, Caguioa 16, Cortez 12, Tubid 7, Helterbrand 7, Intal 6, Wilson W. 6,
Villanueva 6, Labagala 4, Mamaril 2, Cervantes 0, Wilson J. 0.
Alaska 72 - Baracael 20, Thoss 16, Dela Cruz 8, Baguio 7, Tenorio 6, Cablay 5, Custodio 4, Reyes 4,
Salamat 2, Eman 0.
Quarterscores: 17-20, 34-32, 61-51, 83-72
RAIN OR SHINE SQUEAKS PAST POWERADE
RAIN or Shine used to break down during crunch time.
Two games into the 2011-12 PBA Philippine Cup, the Elasto Painters have remained rock-solid down the
stretch.
Rain or Shine put together a pair of critical stops late in the game Sunday night, surviving another
tense outing in a 96-93 victory over Powerade and joining Petron Blaze at the top of the standings
with its second straight win before a conference-high 10,121 fans at the Ynares Center in Antipolo
City.
A ballclub not necessarily noted for its defense, the Elasto Painters forced the Tigers to commit a
24-second shot-clock violation with 33 ticks left to play, and Jeff Chan came through with a
perfectly-timed rejection off a potential overtime-sending three-point shot by Gary David at the
deep right corner, securing their second straight win.
David, the reigning scoring champion, actually recovered the ball after the block, but was pressed
for time to launch another attempt, and his shot didn’t even hit the rim as time expired.
In pulling off the win, Rain or Shine escaped another thriller of an encounter just like the
opening-day victory it recorded against Ginebra, 94-93.
“I consider this as a good sign,” said Painters’ coach Yeng Guiao. “We’re winning close
games. Before our tendency was to collapse but now we proved that we can close out close games.”
Rookie Paul Lee, who debuted in sensational manner with 21 points and eight assists, wasn’t at his
finest decision-making form. He took an ill-advised three-point shot late in the game when Powerade
was already at penalty, and failed to get into a rhythm early because of foul trouble.
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away with a game-high 19 points marked by his first connection from the three-point area, an output
he shared with Chan.
“Paul Lee made one or two misjudgements,” said Guiao. “He’s still a rookie, but as I said
he’s special. He’s getting together well with our players and maganda naman ang samahan. The
chemistry is getting better.”
Yet it was Lee who gave Rain or Shine the breather it needed. He knocked in two pressure-filled free
throws with 57 seconds to go to make it a 96-93 ball game.
In the ensuing play, the Elasto Painters defended the shaded lane superbly, foiling attempts by
David and Marcio Lassiter for the 24-second turnover.
Rain or Shine was left with 33 seconds in the gameclock, and Lee was the one tasked to take the
shot. But instead of driving to the basket and fishing for a foul, Lee launched a three-point shot
at the top of the key that missed, leaving Powerade with eight seconds and the chance to send the
game into extra time.
Jireh Ibanes fouled Cruz four seconds into the Tigers’ possession, and Powerade’s opening to
send the game into overtime was obvious: convert the first attempt and deliberately miss the second
and hope for an offensive rebound.
But Cruz’s first shot rattled out, forcing him to intentionally muff the second. The incident
nearly turned out to be a blessing in disquise after David grabbed the loose ball. David swiftly set
off to the right corner for the potential game-tying triple, but Chan sprinted to reject the shot.
Gabe Norwood added 11 points which came with 10 rebounds and six assists and Ryan Arana had 10.
Doug Kramer scored 16 points and grabbed 14 boards to lead Powerade while David was held to only 14
points after scoring 31 in a 98-87 win over Shopinas last Wednesday.
The scores:
Rain or Shine 96 - Lee 19, Chan 19, Norwood 11, Arana 10, Quinahan 9, Rodriguez 8, Belga 7, Buenafe
6, Ibanes 3, Cruz 2, Matias 2.
Powerade 93 - Kramer 16, David 14, Anthony 13, Lingganay 12, Lassiter 12, Calimag 11, Cruz 7,
Martinez 3, Adducul 3, Crisano 2, Allera 0, Antonio 0.
Quarterscores: 21-21, 40-39, 68-65, 96-93.
LATEST STANDINGS
TEAM RECORD
Rain or Shine Elasto Painters 2 0 1.000
Petron Blaze Boosters 2 0 1.000
Talk N Text Tropang Texters 1 0 1.000
Brgy Ginebra Kings 1 1 0.500
Powerade Tigers 1 1 0.500
Alaska Aces 0 1 0.000
Shopinas.com Clickers 0 1 0.000
Meralco Bolts 0 1 0.000
B-MEG Llamados 0 1 0.000
Barako Bull Energy 0 1 0.000
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