B-MEG DERBY ACE BREAKS OUT OF LOGJAM, NOW IN SOLO 3RD

source: PBA.PH

Sun, 05/09/2010 - 22:22
Defensive demon B-MEG Derby Ace pulled together a solid job on both ends of the court Sunday night, blasting Barangay Ginebra, 95-82, to gain solo third place in the 2010 PBA Fiesta Conference at the Araneta Coliseum. The Llamados, the league’s best defensive team but dead last in scoring, came through with their best offensive effort since their Philippine Cup title conquest, beating the Kings for their fifth win in eight games. James Yap, Cliff Brown, Nino Canaleta, Rafi Reavis and Don Allado tossed in double-digit outputs as Derby Ace relegated Ginebra to fifth place with a 4-4 card. Averaging only 82.14 before the game, the Llamados made big improvement in this contest on a 42.6-percent clip. “We really did what’s required defensively, and we made sure to see progress on our offense,” said Derby Ace coach Ryan Gregorio. “That’s something we’re really working on – scoring. It’s a relief that my players are getting challenged and rising to the occasion,” Gregorio added. Yap rifled in 17 points while Canaleta, Reavis and Allado added 10 apiece as the Llamados took control most of the way even with their import getting into foul-trouble situation early. “Early fouls on our import gave me some anxious moments in the game, but the locals were determined to play and see us through,” said Gregorio. “It’s nice to win games especially against quality teams like Ginebra, and hopefully we continue to get going,” Gregorio added. The Kings couldn’t keep up with the Llamados in the final half, going 1-2 with import Mildon Ambres. After Ambres took a long three-point attempt that didn’t hit anything with 5:02 left, coach Jong Uichico opted to play with an all-Filipino crew the rest of the way. The crowd booed Ambres as he was heading to the bench with Ginebra down by 10 at 74-84. The Kings came within seven, 82-89, on a five-point swing by Willie Miller before Rafi Reavis delivered the killer blow on Ginebra on a thunderous slam on a lob pass by Rico Maierhofer. Brown finished with 13 points and 12 rebounds while Ambres ended up with 17 points and the same number of rebounds. (SB) The scores: Derby Ace 95 - Yap. J 17, Brown 13, Canaleta 10, Reavis 10, Allado 10, Simon 9, Yap R. 9, Pingris 7, Maierhofer 6, Artadi 2, Adducul 2, Timberlake 0. Ginebra 82 - Ambres 17, Menk 12, Miller 10, Hatfield 10, Tubid 7, Helterbrand 7, Villanueva 6, De Ocampo 6, Cruz 5, Wilson 2. Quarters: 23-27, 49-46, 73-63, 95-82