Barangay Ginebra Ako Ikaw?

Jordan NT defeats Ginebra Kings, 84-81

2010-06-25T00:11:00.000-07:00

source: gmanews.tv

For several stretches, Barangay Ginebra flashed its never-say-die spirit against a classy counterpart bound to compete in the biggest cage tournament in the world – the FIBA World Championship.

But Jordan was too tough to crack, even during crunch time.

Sam Daghlas, the Jordanian’s do-it-all guard, came through with crucial buckets to keep the stubborn Gin Kings at bay and tow his squad to an 84-81 triumph at the start of the 2010 Smart Philippine Invitational Challenge at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium Thursday.

Parading a decimated lineup, the Jordanians squandered a 16-point, third-quarter lead, but held on to preserve a victory in this tournament organized by the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas.

The Gin Kings, who repeatedly kept on coming back and urged by a partisan crowd, were in the thick of the fight after taking a 76-75 lead on two free throws by Enrico Villanueva with 3:26 remaining.

But Daghlas came through for the squad of Portuguese mentor Mario Palma as he scored on a reverse layup in the next play to regain the driver’s seat. He then hit two crucial jumpers, including one in front of Mike Cortez, for an 83-78 advantage with 13.8 seconds remaining.

The win put Jordan a game closer to securing a spot in the finals. The team, though, needs to get past the Smart-Gilas developmental team.

"We had key players on injured list," said Palma. “We lost four centers because of injuries while Rasheim Wright is still not in good condition after coming back from an ACL injury."

"We will be tougher. We’re playing here to show something to the Filipino people what we can do," he added.

Daghlas finished with 10 points on 4-of-10 shooting.

Burly 6-foot-8 frontliner Islam Abbaas finished with a game-high 21 points while lanky 6-foot-7 Zaid Abbas added 17 markers.

Jordan, behind the patient offense and tight defense that netted nine steals, posted its biggest lead, 61-45, as Mohammad Hadrab converted a layup off a Ginebra turnover with 2:01 left in the third.

But the Kings, who opted not to insert stars Jayjay Helterbrand and Mark Caguioa while giving limited minutes on Rudy Hatfield, Eric Menk and import Denham Brown, came storming back behind Cortez, Villanueva and Sunday Salvacion.

Cortez showed flashes of old brilliance while Salvacion triggered the Kings’ rally with two triples in an 18-3 spurt.

Counting their recent setbacks in the PBA, the Gin Kings absorbed their fourth straight loss.

"I'm impressed with the quality of plays," said Palma. "Filipino players are very good, they have lot of skills, especially on shooting and they showed it in the second half."

Salvacion led Ginebra with 15 points on 5-of-7 clip from rainbow country. Cortez had 13 while Intal chipped in 10. - RCJ, gmanews.tv

Quarters: 29-13, 42-31, 65-53, 84-81

Llamados hand Kings 3rd straight loss, bolster semis bid

2010-06-23T22:45:00.000-07:00

Derby Ace made a strong case for the remaining outright semifinals berth in the PBA Fiesta Cup after turning its Wednesday night encounter with Barangay Ginebra into a rout, 101-83, at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Llamados easily destroyed the Kings by firing away 10 three-pointers, with Cliff Brown showing the way on a high 4-of-8 shooting from beyond the arc.

In all, the energetic import finished with 24 points and grabbed 16 rebounds as he completely outplayed Ginebra counterpart Denham Brown.

The unexpected ending to the highly-anticipated showdown between two of the league’s most popular ballclubs netted the Llamados their 12th win in 17 outings, tying them with defending champion San Miguel Beer for second place and a possible shot at the no. 2 spot for an automatic slot in the Final Four.

Chances of Derby Ace joining outright semifinalist Talk `N Text into the next round is even brighter as the Llamados have lowly Barako Bull for their final elimination round assignment on June 27.

On the other hand, the Beermen wind up their classification round assignment with a game against the Alaska Aces, who, at 11-6, still has a mathematical chance of forcing a playoff for the no. 2 slot.

“It just feels good knowing you’ve got a shot at that outright semifinals berth," said Brown later.

James Yap added 21 points and Canaleta 11 as the two nailed one three-point shot after another when the Llamados broke away for good in the third period.

Marc Pingris also had 11 and his completed three-point play in the final 1:58 pushed the Llamados to their biggest lead of the night, 97-76.

The Kings capped the eliminations with an even 9-9 card and now await whether they will advance to the quarterfinals outright or at worst, go through the wildcard phase. The Kings lost their third straight game and five of their last six.

Either Rain or Shine or Coca-Cola could forge a playoff with Ginebra for a berth in the quarterfinals in the event they sweep their remaining two games, although the two are set to clash on Sunday. Both teams carry similar 7-9 cards.

The Kings were never really in the game and played catch-up for the entire night.

Brown was a complete bust for the second straight game and the import out of University of Connecticut who once scored 111 points in a basketball match, was held down to just 15 points, including two in the third period when the Llamados went on a big offensive splurge. - RCJ, GMANews.TV

The scores:

B-Meg Derby Ace 101 - Brown 24, Yap J. 21, Canaleta 11, Pingris 11, Artadi 7, Simon 6, Adducul 6, Yap R. 5, Reavis 4, Allado 4, Maierhofer 2.

Ginebra 83 - Brown 15, Hatfield 15, Caguioa 12, Villanueva 11, Salvacion 6, Helterbrand 6, Wilson 5, Cortez 5, Miller 4, Tubid 2, De Ocampo 2.

Quarters: 26-23, 47-37, 72-57, 101-83

Air21 moves out of cellar with squeaker over Ginebra

2010-06-20T21:21:00.000-07:00

Air21 gained some ground again against Barako Energy Coffee in their battle for the last cut.

LeRoy Hickerson made two free throws with 11.7 seconds left then Billy Mamaril blocked a shot by Enrico Villanueva as Air21 nipped Barangay Ginebra, 98-97, to boost its wildcard bid in the PBA Fiesta Conference at the Araneta Coliseum Sunday night.

“It’s tough getting the win which we needed so much. We wanted it badly to get some distance with Barako in our fight for the last slot in the wildcard round,” said Air21 coach Yeng Guiao.

“We’re keeping our attitude positive. We’re still very hopeful that if we make the wildcard, we’ll have a chance even against teams in the upper bracket,” Guiao added.

Avenging a similar one-point loss to the Kings in their previous tiff, the Express moved up to 4-13 -- a game behind the Sta. Lucia Realtors (5-12) and half-game in front of the Barako Energy Coffee Masters (3-13).

Air21 automatically lands in the wildcard round should Barako loses its last two games versus Talk n Text and B-MEG Derby Ace. Hickerson exploded for 33 points and 10 rebounds and drew huge support ironically from two former Ginebra players in Mamaril and Doug Kramer as they dealt the Kings a crucial loss.

Rain or Shine (7-9) and Coca-Cola (7-9) stayed in the running for the top five as Ginebra suffered an eighth loss against nine wins. Kramer came through with a career-high 17 points that went with 16 points while Mamaril got away with numerous key plays down the stretch. Mamaril, acquired recently by Air21 for Mike Cortez, spiked a seven-point game with two blocks and a big rebound down the stretch.

A blot was two missed charities in the last 5.5 seconds allowing the Kings to have a last-gasp shot. The Express eventually pulled through as Denham Brown missed a heave from midcourt at the buzzer.

It was a sorry loss for the Kings who took control most of the way behind the exploits of Mark Caguioa, Rudy Hatfield, Enrico Villanueva and Ronald Tubid. After a long chase, the Express surged ahead at 96-95 on a three-point play by Hickerson off Caguioa with 2:15 left to play.

Ginebra regained the upper hand for the last time at 97-96 on a drive by Brown before Hickerson went to the stripe and knocked in the charities sending Air21 ahead to stay with 11.7 ticks left.

“You have to give it to coach Yeng. We have the same fighting attitude. He never quits and I never quit,” said Hickerson. “We had some discussion with LeRoy before the game and it turned for the better. He’s got a different personality which may be good if we could harness or bad if not manage,” said Guiao. (SB)

The scores:

Air 21 98 - Hickerson 33, Kramer 16, Belga 11, Buenafe 9, Mamaril 7, Arboleda 7, Billones 5, Matias 4, Sharma 2, Gonzales 2, Ritualo 2, Williams 0, Alvarez 0.

Ginebra 97 - Caguioa 21, Hatfield 17, Villanueva 15, Tubid 14, Brown 11, Cortez 6, De Ocampo 5, Wilson 4, Miller 4, Intal 0, Helterbrand 0.

Quarters: 21-28, 52-57, 71-77, 98-97

4 teams fight for outright PBA semis slot

2010-06-15T00:48:00.002-07:00

source: Waylon Galvez | mb.com.ph

With the first of the two outright semifinal berths in the PBA Fiesta Cup already secured by Talk ’N Text, four teams are in the running for the other one.

Defending champion San Miguel Beer, reigning Philippine Cup champion B-Meg Derby Ace, Alaska, and Barangay Ginebra are in the thick of the fight for the second automatic semis slot.

The Beermen lead the contenders with their 11-4 card win-loss card, but not far behind are the B-Meg Llamados (10-5), the Aces (9-6) and the Kings (9-7).

Talk ’N Text claimed the first outright slot with an 85-82 win over the Gabe Freeman-less SMB last Saturday in the PBA road game presented by Phoenix Fuel in Victorias City, Negros Occidental.

The win extended the Tropang Texters’ winning streak to 13 for a 14-2 record.

"It's a big win for us,” TNT mentor Chot Reyes said. “Now we can relax.”

The Beermen are expected to face a rough sailing in their final game against the Aces on June 26 in Dumaguete City.

This Wednesday, the Beermen will face the Coca-Cola Tigers (6-9), who stunned the Kings (96-95) last Sunday. They will then take on the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters (7-7) on Friday.

Even with its recent defeat, Ginebra still has a fighting chance to make it to the semifinals automatically although the Kings have to win their last two games against the Air21 Express (3-12) on Sunday and the Llamados on June 23.

But the fate of Ginebra won’t just fall on the hands of the Kings since a win by SMB will eliminate them in the race.

“Obviously, San Miguel has the inside track. Although they have tough games ahead, including us,” Alaska coach Tim Cone said, as his team will face Rain or Shine on Wednesday, Sta. Lucia Realty (4-11) on Sunday before taking on SMB.

“Our concern is to make the top five,” Cone said. “Once we get to the top five, we can now look at the possibility of making it to top two.

But making the top two is not really our concern.”

As for B-Meg Derby Ace, which won its last three games, including thrilling victories against San Miguel, (83-82) and Rain or Shine (86-84), the Ryan Gregorio-mentored squad will face Talk ‘N Text on Saturday in Tacloban City, then Ginebra and Barako Bull Coffee on June 27.

The teams who will be third to fifth places at the end of classification will also earn outright slots in the best-of-five quarterfinals. The sixth to ninth teams will play in the crossover knockout wildcard phase, while the 10th place team will be eliminated automatically.

Games Wednesday (Araneta Coliseum)
5 p.m. – Coca-Cola vs San Miguel
7:30 p.m. – Rain or Shine vs Alaska

Coca-Cola Tigers escape past Ginebra in a wild finish

2010-06-15T00:48:00.001-07:00

source: gmanews.tv

John Williamson scored seven of Coca-Cola’s last 11 points and teamed up with Asi Taulava in the endgame as the Tigers pulled off a 96-95 come-from-behind win over the Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings Sunday in the PBA Fiesta Cup at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

Playing in his debut game, the 6-foot-6 import out of University of Cincinnati carried the load for the Tigers in the payoff period before Taulava came through with a power play off Rudy Hatfield that broke the game’s final deadlock and put Coca-Cola ahead for good, 95-93.

Williamson, coming in as a late replacement for Rashad Bell, led the Tigers with 24 points and nine rebounds. His split from the foul line with nine seconds remaining stretched the Tigers’ lead to three, 96-93, opening the door for a possible game-tying basket by the Kings.

The league’s crowd darling almost did it as Sunday Salvacion recovered the rebound off a Mark Caguioa miss, hurriedly positioned himself in deep left corner, and buried a fade-away shot with a defender’s hand on his face as the clock was ticking down.

The shot went in at the buzzer, sending the Ginebra bench in frenzy and creating pandemonium inside the playing arena.

But a review of the game tape showed one of Salvacion’s foot stepping inside the three-point area, allowing the Tigers to escape with the win after trailing by as many as 11 points in the opening half.

“This win is so significant because it builds improvement on our team. Our main focus was to improve," said coach Bo Perasol with a big sigh of relief. “I told my players to just get the process improved, either we go to the wildcard phase or the playoffs in preparation for anything."

The Tigers are now 6-9 overall as they won for the second time in three outings, enhancing further their bid for the wildcard phase.

Taulava also dominated inside with 15 points and 10 rebounds.

Ginebra’s 7th loss in 16 outings formally slammed the door on its hopes of making the semifinals outright. At the most, the team’s only hope is landing an automatic berth in the quarterfinals.

Mark Caguioa led the Kings with 24 points, but committed a crucial offensive foul on Marvin Cruz with 10 seconds remaining and Ginebra just down by two.

Willie Miller added 21 and Denham Brown 20, including two free throws with 1:55 left that tied the game for the last time, 93-93. - RCJ, GMANews.TV

Scores:

Coke 96 - Williamson 24, David 16, Taulava 15, Macapagal 11, Mendoza 9, Rizada 6, Allera 5, Rodriguez 4, Espino 4, Cruz 2, Gonzales 0, Antonio 0.

Ginebra 95- Caguioa 24, Miller 21, Brown 20, De Ocampo 10, Villanueva 5, Helterbrand 5, Cortez 3, Hatfield 3, Wilson 2, Salvacion 2, Intal 0, Cruz 0, Tubid 0.

Quarter scores:22-30, 48-57, 73-69, 96-95

Ginebra gets back on track with 21-point rout of Barako Coffee

2010-06-09T22:24:00.000-07:00

source: PBA.ph

Barangay Ginebra picked up the pieces after two jolting defeats, shredding Barako Energy Coffee, 107-86, after a slow start Wednesday night at the Araneta Coliseum.

Import Denham Brown scored 26 points to go with his 16 rebounds and Mark Caguio accounted for 12 of his 19 markers in the second quarter to spark a ferocious charge that put the Kings in control.

“The first quarter was terrible. Good thing the players picked up their rhythm in the second,” said Barangay Ginebra coach Jong Uichico, visibly relieved after their repeat victory against the Coffee Makers.

Their ninth win in 15 games cushioned successive losses against Rain or Shine and Talk ‘N Text and kept the Kings well within the Top 5, shoring up their hopes for an outright quarterfinal, if not outright semifinal, berth in the PBA Fiesta Conference.

“But we can’t play that way. Our upcoming games are very crucial. I don’t know if we still have a chance to make the semifinals outright. Regardless, our target right now is to get as many wins as we could to make sure we get to the playoffs,” Uichico said.

Enrico Villanueva had 12 points, Sunday Salvacion added 11 and Willie Miller contributed 10 and six assists for the Kings, who made 11 of 27 3-point shots and went 10 of 15 from the free throw line.

Eric Menk sat out his third straight game with a pulled calf muscle but the Kings still dominated the boards, 58-38.

The Kings shot just 38 percent in the first quarter and appeared in trouble when the Coffee Makers surged to a 23-11 lead on successive baskets by import Sam Monroe and Richard Alonzo.

Barako Energy Coffee held a 29-22 lead when Caguioa picked up his offensive rhythm and led a 17-7 run that shoved the Kings ahead, 39-36.

A basket by Paolo Hubalde and another by import Sam Monroe put Barako Energy Coffee back on top by two but the Kings quickly responded with an 18-3 blast for a 57-44 halftime advantage. The Coffee Makers never recovered after that.

Monroe scored 17 points and Reed Juntilla and Hubalde added 13 apiece for the Coffee Makers, who picked up their seventh consecutive loss and moved on the brink of elimination with a 3-12 card. (DBC)

The scores:

Barangay Ginebra 107 - Brown 26, Caguioa 19, Villanueva 12, Salvacion 11, Miller 10, Hatfield 10, Tubid 7, Intal 4, Cruz 3, De Ocampo 3, Wilson 2, Ferriols 0, Helterbrand 0.

Barako Coffee 86 - Monroe 17, Juntilla 13, Hubalde 13, Dimaunahan 10, Reyes 9, Alonzo 6, Najorda 6,Isip 4, Vergara 3, Wainwright 3, Faundo 2, Duncil 0.

Quarterscores: 22-29, 57-44, 79-61, 107-86

TNT survives Ginebra, reclaims top spot

2010-06-06T21:44:00.000-07:00

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Talk ‘N Text survived Barangay Ginebra’s scorching rally in the final 2 minutes to hang on for a 92-84 victory Saturday night in the KFC-PBA Fiesta Cup at the Batangas City Sports Complex in Batangas City.

The Tropang Texters were comfortably ahead at 86-74 with 2:32 left in the game when the Kings, behind the hot hands of Sunday Salvacion, staged a comeback that fell short.

With the win, Talk ‘N Text extended its win streak to a franchise-best 11 games and reclaimed the top spot with 12-2 mark, just half a game ahead of San Miguel Beer (11-2).

“We have to recover because this game really took a lot from us considering we played last Wednesday and as you see, my players are cramping up,” said Texters head coach Chot Reyes.

“So, we are not thinking about Alaska right now. Our concern is to recover and be ready to play on Wednesday,” he added.

The victory also moved them to a win away of assuring a playoff for one of the two automatic semis seats. It ended Ginebra’s amazing 10-game winning run in out of town matches.

Jimmy Alapag finished with 21 points and 7 assists for TNT but suffered cramps at the end of the game. Mark Cardona and Harvey Carey contributed 14 markers apiece for the TNT, which managed to win the contest despite a 3-point output of prized recruit Kelly Williams.

New Kings’ import Denham Brown tallied 25 points while Mark Caguiao added 15. Rudy Hatfield had 12 points and 12 boards for coach Jong Uichico, whose wards dropped to 8-6.

Ibañes shines as Painters hold off Kings' uprising

2010-05-30T21:53:00.001-07:00

source: gmanews.tv

There’s no way Rain or Shine would allow Barangay Ginebra steal another game at its expense. Jireh Ibañes, the Elasto Painters’ sparkplug from the bench, made sure about that.

Ibañes scored a team-high 15 points as the Elasto Painters held tougher down the stretch in preserving an 84-83 win over the hard-fighting Kings Sunday night in the PBA Fiesta Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.

Ibañes almost single-handedly carried the fight for Rain or Shine at the height of Ginebra’s big fourth quarter rally, accounting for the team’s final three points, including a tough drive to the basket off a transition that gave the Elasto Painters an 84-81 lead inside the final two minutes.

The Kings, who battled back from as much as 40-55 deficit early in the second half, made it a one-point game after Mark Caguioa sank the last of his game-high 28 markers with 68 seconds left.

But Ginebra failed to capitalize from there, botching its final three offensive plays, the last of which courtesy of a short Willie Miller jumper as time expired, finally putting an end to the Kings’ four-game winning run for an 8-5 card.

“This game really belongs to us," said Ibanes, reminded about the similar meeting between the two teams in the first round of the eliminations, when the Kings also came back from 16-points down and won, 100-98.

“The management and the coaching just have a complete trust in me. They told me to just wait for the right opportunity to come, and that opportunity came now," added the Rain or Shine guard, who was 6-of-8 from the field.

Ibañes averaged just 2.4 points in the Elasto Painters’ first 10 games in the eliminations, but his breakout game Sunday night allowed Rain or Shine to improve its record to 6-5.

Ibañes, the hero, almost ended up the goat as well.

After Milton Ambres missed on a corner three-pointer with 10 seconds left and the Kings down by just a point, Ibanes grabbed the rebound, scooted downcourt and was promptly fouled by Rudy Hatfield for two free throws to stop the clock.

But the Rain or Shine guard bungled the front-end of his charities, prompting him to intentionally miss the second foul throw as well.

Enrico Villanueva collared the board and called timeout, giving the Kings 1.2 seconds to go for a game-winning basket, a thing that never happened. – RCJ, GMANews.TV

The scores:

Rain or Shine 84 - Ibanes 15, Mercado 15, Norwood 13, Lewis 12, Arana 9, Tang 6, Chan 6, Reyes 5, Laure 3, Cruz 0, Hrabak 0, Telan 0.

Ginebra 83 - Caguioa 28, Ambres 20, Tubid 12, Miller 10, Wilson 3, Hatfield 3, De Ocampo 3, Mamaril 2, Helterbrand 2, Villanueva 0.

Quarters: 25-18, 49-40, 69-63, 84-83

'Miller Time' sparks Kings' triumph over streaking Beermen

2010-05-26T21:50:00.001-07:00

source: gmanews.tv

`Miller Time’ finally put an end to the longest winning streak in the PBA Fiesta Cup.

Willie Miller played his best game in a Barangay Ginebra uniform, scoring 26 big points and guiding the Kings to a rousing 104-90 victory over defending champion San Miguel Wednesday night before a huge crowd at the Araneta Coliseum.

The only guard to win the MVP title twice, Miller presided over a strong Barangay Ginebra start, and then bailed the team out of danger when the Beermen threatened for the last time coming home.

After Dondon Hontiveros put San Miguel to within 88-91 with a booming three-pointer inside the final five minutes, Miller strung up five straight points, including a quick-released three-point shot off a Mark Caguioa assist, that stretched the Ginebra lead to eight.

Milton Ambres then decided the outcome of the bruising game with another trey for a 99-88 count with 81 seconds left to play.

Acquired in a blockbuster, one-on-one trade with Alaska for Cyrus Baguio, Miller went 10-of-14 from the field and was 4-of-5 from three-point range. He also had eight assists.

“His teammates are always urging him on the offensive end, kaya sana nga mag-tuluy-tuloy na ito," said coach Jong Uichico in the post-game press conference.

Ginebra’s eight win in 12 outings put back the league’s crowd darling in solo third place.

The loss ended the nine-game winning run of the Beermen, who prior to the setback, last suffered defeat at the hands of Coca-Cola, 108-98, last March 28.

But the reigning champion remained on top with a 10-2 slate.

“We played the no.1 team, so it was really a hard-fought game. Good thing, we came up with a win tonight. Hopefully, we’ve gone over the hump," Uichico added.

Miller scored half of his total output in the opening half. His soft jumper following a behind-the-back dribble off Alex Cabagnot gave the Kings the first of their two 14-point leads in the second quarter, 60-46.

But the champion that they are, the Beermen bounced back in the third period, outscoring the Kings in the first six minutes of the second half, 19-4, to take the upperhand, 67-66.

The Kings, however, regained the lead at 78-77, entering the final quarter.

Ambres added 16 points, Eric Menk had 14 and Caguiao chipped in 12 as the Kings won for the third straight time.

Gabe Freeman, recipient of a flagrant foul courtesy of Enrico Villanueva in the third period, finished with 19 points and 17 rebounds to lead the Beermen, while Santos had 16, the last of which broke San Miguel’s silence in the stretch run but not enough to turn the game around, 101-90, with less than a minute remaining.

Jay Washington, engaged in a jawing incident with Willie Wilson in the final 3:54, and Hontiveros each had 12 for the defending champion. - RCJ, GMANews.TV

KINGS GET BACK AT ACES WITH COME-FROM-BEHIND WIN

2010-05-23T22:33:00.001-07:00

source PBA.PH

Live ScoreListen LivePBATeamsNewsScheduleResultsStatsVideoPhotosForumPBA StoreTicketsKINGS GET BACK AT ACES WITH COME-FROM-BEHIND WIN
Sun, 05/23/2010 - 00:03

CEBU CITY – In a gambit that paid off, Barangay Ginebra played all-Filipino in the homestretch and stunned Alaska Milk with a lightning attack leading to a sweet revenge.

The Kings, behind a big endgame run, got back at the Aces, 105-93, in their rematch in the 2010 PBA Fiesta Conference elimination round at the Cebu Coliseum here Saturday night.

“We just kept on fighting, fighting and fighting. Things turned around at the right time,” said head coach Jong Uichico as his troops topped the Aces in the Cebu stop of the Phoenix Fuel PBA On Tour.

“We just didn’t give up. Our players played their hearts out and that’s just the way the Ginebra team should play come what may,” added Uichico as they avenged an 81-86 defeat to the Aces in their initial tiff and, thus, gained solo third in the standings with a 7-4 win-loss card.

Baffled at endgame, the Aces slid from joint third down to fifth with a 6-5 card.

Eric Menk, Mark Caguioa, Ronald Tubid, Willie Miller and Willie Wilson worked on a decisive closing run that carried the Kings to a third win in a row – the team’s longest streak in the tourney thus far.

The Fiesta Conference champs two seasons ago, the Kings closed out with a 19-2 attack curiously after coach Uichico decided to take import Mildon Ambres out for good following back-to-back lapses that allowed the Aces to get a five-point lead, 91-86, with 3:43 left to play.

With Ambres on the bench, the Kings employed a stifling defense, holding the Aces scoreless for over three minutes.

When the Aces broke the spell through a layup by LA Tenorio, the game was already beyond reach, 93-102, with time down to 28 seconds..

Tubid banged away a three-pointer, Miller canned two free throws, Wilson made a short stab and Tubid had another triple that sent Barangay Ginebra ahead at 96-91.

And there was no stopping the Kings as they roared on to halt the Aces’ own two-game romp.

Menk pumped in a personal conference-high of 25 points, including a booming trey that sealed their win at 101-91 with 42 ticks left.

Caguioa added 20 while Miller and Jayjay Helterbrand chipped in 12 apiece as the Kings engaged the Aces in a battle despite Ambres’ so-so game.

Simpson showed up Ambres with the former finishing with 24 points against the latter’s 10.

Cyrus Baguio had another sterling game versus his former team but he himself lost his touch at the finish.

It was a sorry loss for the Aces who took control most of the second half, leading by 12 points on back-to-back three-pointers by Larry Fonacier at the start of the payoff period.

Helterbrand and Miller ignited a run that brought the Kings to within one at 86-87 with 4:39 left.

Then Simpson pounced on defensive breakdowns by Ambres, coming through with a four-point binge that gave the Aces their 91-86 margin. (SB)

The scores:

Barangay Ginebra 105 – Menk 25, Caguioa 20, Miller 12, Helterbrand 12, Ambres 10, Tubid 9, Hatfield 8, Villanueva 4, De Ocampo 3, Wilson 2, Cruz 0.

Alaska 93 – Simpson 24, Baguio 17, Dela Cruz 11, Devance 11, Tenorio 9, Thoss 7, Fonacier 6, Borboran 4, Eman 2, Hugnatan 2, Dela Pena 0.

Quarterscores: 25-20, 46-50, 69-75, 105-93

PBA Player of the Week: Menk sparks rise of the Kings

2010-05-17T22:51:00.001-07:00

source: gmanews.tv

There are ony two Most Valuable Players for the Baragay Ginebra Gin Kings – Eric Menk and Jayjay Helterbrand.

But only one them played true to form.

At a tiem when the Gin Kings needed a quick turnaround to keep their season going, Menk provided the spark to be chosen as the hands down choice of the PBA Press Corps as the Player of the Week for May 10 to 16.

Menk beat Williams, who was traded to Talk N Text recently, for the honors.

The man known as Major Pain averaged 16.0 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists that approximated his numbers during his 2004-05 MVP for season.

Not bad for a 35-year-old, who went into the week averaging just 7.8 points and 3.6 rebounds in Ginebra’s first eight games in the Fiesta Conference.

Now, the Kings are safely ensconced at fourth-running spot with a 6-4 win-loss record and Menk is undeniably a big factor.
Uichico rightfully maintains it is his most senior player setting the tone for the rest of the team.

“He has been working extra hard to be in the best shape possible and is so focused on his game," said the multi-titled tactician.

It was the moment the Gin Kings were waiting for. The team was uncharacteristically scrambling coming into the week, having lost three of their its last four games. Even the squad’s lone win was nothing to brag about, barely squeaking past another struggling team in Air21, 101-100, last May 5.

Then came Menk’s 20-point explosion against Barako Coffee that was capped by six points in a 12-0 windup, tiding the Kings over from an 81-90 deficit and deficit and into a 93-90 win last Wednesday.

“The other guys were looking for me and luckily my shots went in," said Menk. “It was an escape, but it's good we came out with the win."

It was also a good morale and confidence builder as Ginebra went on to handily beat Sta. Lucia, 102-85, last Sunday, marking the first time in four meetings this season the Kings won over the Realtors.

With Mildon Ambres, Ronald Tubid and Jayjay Helterbrand showing the way, Menk was content with a 12-point, eight-rebound production. - RCJ, GMANews.TV

PLAYING OLD FIRE, GINEBRA ROUTS NEW-LOOK STA. LUCIA

2010-05-17T22:50:00.000-07:00

source:pba.ph

Sun, 05/16/2010 - 18:59

FOR once in quite a while, Barangay Ginebra displayed some of its old fire.

That, and the fact Sta. Lucia Realty was still trying to adjust playing without two of its most prized players, led to the Kings' 102-85 victory Sunday in the PBA Fiesta Conference at the Araneta Coliseum.

Mildon Ambres and Ronald Tubid led the Ginebra players who mostly provided the sustaining fire as the Kings not only started the second round of eliminations on a bright note but also broke the spell SLR has cast on it this season.

“At least we saw something positive in today's game. They (Kings) played more as a team today. They tried their very best and showed fire,” said Barangay Ginebra coach Jong Uichico, whose team barely won two of its last three games, struggling in both.

Things were drastically different Sunday night as the Kings dominated from start to finish, even leading by 23 points twice, en route to improving their win-loss record to 6-4.

Uichico, however, quickly pointed out SLR is still trying to adjust from the trade sealed last Wednesday that saw Kelly Williams and Ryan Reyes being shipped to Talk ‘N Text.

The absence of the two, who combined to average 32.0 points, 21.3 rebounds, 8.6 assists, 2.7 steals and 1.0 blocks in three previous wins against Ginebra this season, was clearly a factor and tempered Ginebra's jubilation.

“It's hard to make this a judgment day, kasi nawalan ng players ang Sta. Lucia. Those two are the core of their team,” Uichico pointed out.

Yet Uichico is also aware his team may have gained some momentum.

“We have tough games coming up, against Alaska and San Miguel Beer, so kailangan we should build on this win, keep on improving,” he said.

Adjustment is also the operating word for the Realtors, who dropped to a 4-6 slate.

“We have so many things to adjust,” said SLR coach Boyet Fernandez, whose team drew a game-high 31 points and nine rebounds from Anthony Johnson but got outrebounded 40-53.

“We've got a lot to learn in our defensive rotation,” he added. “Hindi pa nag-click sa rotation, at kailangan pa ang konting adjustment, execution-wise sa mga bagong dating.”

Marlou Aquino's grandfather also passed away in Pangasinan recently, preventing him from joining practice for two days. But there were some bright notes, like Yousif Aljamal draining four triples for 12 points and Ali Peek hauling down seven rebounds.

But those are overshadowed by the fact that Jayjay Helterbrand, Mark Caguioa and Eric Menk each had at least 12 points, while Rudy Hatfield added on to anchoring the defense on Johnson by snaring 10 rebounds for Barangay Ginebra.

The Kings also shot 50 percent from the floor, the percentage pulled down a bit by its 11-for-24 clip from beyond the arc.

Tubid going a perfect 5-for-5 from three-point land and Ambres and Helterbrand adding three triples each helped Barangay Ginebra pull away, although it was Caguioa's fastbreak layup that made it a 93-70 count, 4:29 left.

That proved enough to put a stamp on Barangay Ginebra's total domination of the second half and quash whatever drive the Realtors may still have had.

It was a different story in the first two quarters.

With Tubid scoring eight straight points during a 13-4 run to start the second period, the Kings seemed well on their way to a runaway win.

Those thoughts quickly vanished when Aljamal came in to drain three triples and, with help from Johnson and Gabby Espinas (13 points), led SLR in whittling the deficit to just 37-48.

It took another trey by Tubid before Barangay Ginebra had a 51-37 halftime lead it sustained to 77-63 going into the fourth period, mainly due to Ambres' 14 third quarter points. (NC)

The scores:

Barangay Ginebra 102 - Ambres 21, Tubid 17, Helterbrand 17, Caguioa 12, Menk 12, Hatfield 7, Villanueva 6, Wilson 5, Miller 2, De Ocampo 2, Cruz 1

Sta. Lucia 85 - Johnson 31, Espinas 13, Aljamal 12, Mendoza 11, Omolon 5, Peek 5, Belasco 4, Escobal 2, Aquino 2, Urbiztondo 0, Menor 0, Belano 0

Quarterscores: 27-13, 51-37, 77-63, 102-85.

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

2010-05-10T22:43:00.001-07:00

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

CAGUIOA SITS 1 GAME, FINED 20K FOR THROWING BALL AT REF

2010-05-10T22:21:00.000-07:00

source: PBA.PH

Sat, 05/08/2010 - 10:33

Barangay Ginebra shooting guard Mark Caguioa has been suspended for one game for throwing the ball at a game official during the Kings-Air21 Express match last Wednesday at the Araneta Coliseum.

Philippine Basketball Basketball Association Commissioner Sonny Barrios, who handed the decision yesterday, also fined Caguioa P20,000.

Caguioa will serve his suspension on Sunday when the Kings play the B-Meg Derby Ace Llamados.

Barrios said he painstakingly tried to appreciate the explanation of Caguioa on the incident but emphasized the league rules on “the action and not the intention.”

In his letter to Caguioa, the Commissioner noted that there is strong video footage evidence showing that he had first looked at and seen referee Throngy Aldaba before actually throwing the ball at him. It would therefore be difficult to accept Caguioa’s contention that he was surprised to see referee Aldaba there, and he didn’t see he was bouncing the ball off a game official.

But even if Caguioa claimed he thought he was bouncing the ball off an opponent, Commissioner Barrios noted that the normal and legitimate way of bouncing off the ball against an opponent to retain possession is to bounce it off against the lower portion/extremities of the body (from knee down). However, Caguioa bounced the ball off the person’s chest – an act classified as Flagrant Foul Penalty 2 (FFP2) under the PBA Playing rules.

Barrios also cited a recent case involving Alaska’s Brandon Cablay, who was slapped a similar punishment after playfully tossing the ball and hitting his friend Air21 guard Mike Cortez.

“We cannot rule on intentions of offenders as it would be dangerous to read one’s intentions. Instead, we rule on one’s actions,” Barrios told Caguioa in his letter.

“Was the ball thrown at the referee? Was the referee hit by the ball? “

Those two questions, Barrios said, are the compelling determinants if the playing rule has been violated or not.

more top stories

Ginebra snatch one-point win over Air21

2010-05-06T05:19:00.000-07:00

source: PBA.ph

Barangay Ginebra coach Jong Uichico did not hesitate to admit they were just lucky. The Kings salvaged a 101-100 decision past Air 21 Wednesday at the Araneta Coliseum only because Express reserve guard Ronnie Matias missed a potential game winner at the buzzer.

“It was a lost game. We were just lucky,” proclaimed the low-keyed Uichico of the game that turned exciting in the closing minutes as the Express, who blew a 15-point advantage rallied from a 12-points deficit in the last four minutes and nearly pulled off a Houdini.

The breathtaking victory enabled the Kings to snap a two-game losing skid and improved to 4-3 (win-loss) record.

Import Mildon Ambers showed some improvement in his second game, scoring 26 points that went with his 18 rebounds. Eric Menk had 19 points and Willie Miller added 12, including two free throws with 2:10 remaining that turned out to be the insurance baskets for the Kings, who played the final two and a quarters without shooter Mark Caguioa.

Caguioa was tossed from the game with 5:07 to play in the second quarter for throwing the ball at referee Throngee Aldaba during a transition play.

“The team per se is struggling at this point. So every win while we are trying to find the right way is very important,” Uichico said.

The Kings looked like goners when they fell behind by 15 points late in the third quarter.

But things turned in their favor in the fourth as the Express, who dominated the game for most part, experienced some offensive meltdown in a span of ten and a half minutes that saw them missing 14 straight field goal attempts while succumbing to five turnovers.

The Kings capitalized on it. With Ambers and Menk hitting their range, the Kings outscored the Express, 23-3, to build a 97-85 lead with 4:49 to go.

Although the pressure shifted to their side, the Express still didn’t lose heart.

They made crucial stops and Ronjay Buenafe knocked in crucial baskets as the Express pulled to within 100-101 on a lay-up by import by Reggie Larry with 76 seconds remaining.

The Kings also appeared to have sealed the game when Larry fouled out with 33.5 seconds to play.

But in the ensuing play Menk missed a shot in the lane and Mike Cortez stole the ball from Ambers and quickly fed the open Matias. The sophomore guard took a shot from eight feet at the right corner.

The ball bounced off the rim a couple of times before falling out as time expired.

“We played a good game. Our imports played well. The locals also played well. The game was just stolen from us…,” said Air21 coach Yeng Guiao, who had his worst start for the first time since losing 10 of his first 11 games with Red Bull during its first conference in the league in the 2000 All-Filipino Conference.

Larry finished with 30 points and had 15 rebounds. Buenafe accounted for 24 including 6 for 11 from the 3-point range and Beau Belga added 13 for the Express, who picked up their sixth straight loss and fell deeper in the team standings with its 1-7 slate. (DBC)

The scores:

Barangay Ginebra 101 - Ambres 26, Menk 19, Miller 12, Caguioa 10, Tubid 9, Wilson 8, Villanueva 6, Helterbrand 6, Hatfield 5, Cruz 0, De Ocampo 0.

Air21 100 - Larry 30, Buenafe 24, Belga 13, Gonzales 7, Cortez 7, Sharma 4, Rodriguez 3, Kramer 3, Ritualo 3, Williams 2, Matias 2, Alvarez 2, Billones 0.

Quarterscores: 26-30, 55-63, 74-82, 101-100.

GINEBRA, B-MEG DERBY ACE, AIR21 TRY LUCK WITH NEW IMPORTS

2010-05-03T21:46:00.000-07:00

Source pba.ph

Sat, 05/01/2010 - 08:51

Barangay Ginebra, B-MEG Derby Ace and Air21 are three ball clubs coming back from the PBA All-Star break with new imports in tow.

The Kings, the Llamados and the Express signed up new imports in an effort to boost their respective drives in the 2010 PBA Fiesta Conference.

Ginebra enlisted Mildon Ambres in lieu of Awvee Storey. The Kings introduce Ambres to the PBA fans as they take on the Alaska Aces at the resumption of the season-ending tourney at the Araneta Coliseum Friday.

Meanwhile, Derby Ace tapped Cliff Brown for Lorenzo Wade while Air21 got Reggie Larry for Jason Forte.

Wade has been put on the injured list, thus, he can be reactivated anytime the team wishes to.

“We got Cliff Brown to fill in our need at No. 4 spot while Kerby Raymundo is out with an injury,” said Derby Ace coach Ryan Gregorio.

Brown, 25, was a teammate of Jai Lewis with the Toyota Alvark in the Japanese league.

Also a veteran of the European league, Brown was measured standing 6-foot-4 15/16.

Ambres is also 25, fresh from a stint with the Idaho Stampede in the NBA Developmental League. He was measured at 6-5 1/16.

Larry was Purefoods’ original choice as import in the same tourney last year. He wasn’t able to play, though, as he suffered an injury a few days before opening day.

Brunei Barracudas coach Bong Ramos highly recommended Larry to the Air21 management.

Ramos used to call the shots for the Lina Group ballclub. Larry played under Ramos' team in the inaugural ABL tourney topped by the Philippine Patriots reinforced by Gabe Freeman and Jason Dixon.

The Kings and the Llamados sport 3-2 cards, tied with the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters at fourth place.

San Miguel leads the tourney with a 5-1 record, followed by Talk n Text at 5-2 and Coca-Cola at 4-3.

Air21 is at ninth with a 1-5 record. The Express have brought in three imports with Keena Young the first one, followed by Forte, then Larry. (SB)

BAGUIO SKIES IN ALASKA DEBUT

2010-05-03T21:43:00.000-07:00

Source: pba.ph

Sat, 05/01/2010 - 02:00

Cyrus Baguio upstaged Willie Miller in their debut with their new teams, helping Alaska Milk sustain its romp at the resumption of the 2010 PBA Fiesta Conference.

Baguio made a big impact in his first game with Alaska, fueling the team’s mighty comeback from 15 points down en route to an 86-81 win over Barangay Ginebra at the Araneta Coliseum Friday night.

Facing his former team, Baguio took charge at the finish, stealing the thunder from Miller as Alaska made it five in a row versus Ginebra dating back to their Philippine Cup best-of-seven semifinals showdown swept by the Aces.

The 6-foot-2 guard-forward tossed in 12 of his 14 points in the final quarter, outscoring the entire Ginebra team in the payoff period.

Baguio and the Aces stunned the Kings with a huge closing run, overcoming a poor first half as Alaska notched a third straight win after starting its stint in the reinforced tourney with two successive defeats.

“We’re totally out of whack in the beginning. Mark Caguioa was going crazy and we couldn’t stop him. Then Cyrus turned things around for us,” said Alaska coach Tim Cone on Baguio’s heroics.

“Willie (Miller) would certainly have his moments and Ginebra would love him, but tonight’s Cyrus’ night,” Cone added.

“Hindi ko in-expect ito. Nag-dasal lang ako na sana naman huag ako mapahiya sa unang laro ko sa Alaska,” said Baguio.

“Ang sama ng laro ko at the start kasi medyo nahihiya pa ako. Good thing, nakuha ko ang rhythm sa fourth quarter,” Baguio added.

Baguio was all over the floor in the final period, going 4-of-7 from the field and 3-of-4 from the stripe, and also getting three rebounds, two blocks and one assist.

The Ace survived after a struggle throughout the first three quarters of play.

Earlier, Ginebra dished out an inspired game playing with a new import in Mildon Ambres and prized new acquisition in Miller.

They led by as many as 15 before settling for a 51-38 halftime lead.

With their new mix, the Kings showed great potential only to falter at the finish and suffer a third loss against the same number of wins.

The Ginebra fans gave Miller a big applause as he checked in for the game a minute into the second half.

He grabbed two rebounds, issued two assists and committed an error before making his first basket as a Ginebra player, slithering past three defenders for a reversed layup.

Miller had a hand as the Kings built double-digit spreads in the second quarter even with Ambres resting on the bench.

Mark Caguioa led their second-quarter breakaway, going perfect from the field with a three-pointer and three twinners.

Back-to-back three-pointers by Ambres and Caguioa gave Ginebra a 27-22 lead in the opening period. (SB)

The scores:

Alaska 86 - Simpson 35, Baguio 14, Tenorio 13, Dela Cruz 12, Eman 4, Thoss 4, Hugnatan 4, De Vance 0, Fonacier 0, Cablay 0.

Ginebra 81 - Ambres 23, Caguioa 22, Cruz 11, Wilson 6, Hatfield 5, Menk 4, Tubid 3, Helterbrand 3, Ferriols 2, Miller 2, Mamaril 0.

Quarterscores: 22-27, 38-51, 60-74, 86-81

Miller, Baguio to debut against former teams

2010-04-29T22:23:00.001-07:00

source: gmanews.tv

Two days after being involved in a blockbuster trade, both Willie Miller and Cyrus Baguio will be judged on Friday as they suit up for their respective new teams and play against each other in the main game of the PBA Fiesta Conference doubleheader at the Araneta Coliseum.

Barangay Ginebra and Alaska clash in a 7:30 p. m. match made more interesting following the intriguing deal that brought Miller, the two-time league most valuable player (MVP), to the Kings in exchange for the high-flying Baguio following the All-Start weekend.

Despite losing Baguio, Kings coach Jong Uichico said he is thrilled with the arrival of the enigmatic shooting guard out of Letran, whom he expects will need a couple of more games before finally settling in with Ginebra’s system.

“Of course it’s always nice to have a Willie Miller in your team. But we now have to wait for him to get use to our system. We have to be patient," said Uichico.

The 5-foot-11 Miller averaged 17 points, three rebounds and 4.5 assists in four games with Alaska this conference.

Aside from Miller, new Ginebra import Mildon Ambres will also have to adjust with the Kings’ brand of play. Ambres takes over the place vacated by Awvee Storey.

Storey, the Kings’ reinforcement in their first five games, is hurting with a dislocated finger in his right hand, but may be tapped anew if ever Ambres proves to be a flop.

Uichico admitted not seeing strong points on Ambres during evaluation periods since his arrival last Monday.

Like Miller and Ambres, eyes will also be on Baguio since he’ll be taking over the spot left by the player whom coach Tim Cone declared as the best closer in the league.

Baguio, a former All-Star Games Slam Dunk champion and Red Bull’s (now Barako Energy Coffee) second round pick in the 2003 Draft averaged 9.2 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.8 assists as a back up in Ginebra’s 3-2 (win-loss) slate.

The former University of Santo Tomas (UST) star is joining Alaska just when the Aces appeared to have snapped out of a slump, winning its last two games before the All-Stars for an even 2-2 slate.

Asked whether which team got the better end of the deal, Cone gave his reasonable thoughts.

“I don’t think one game would be enough to determine which team got the better end of the deal. Willie may score 60 points or Cyrus may be shut down once our teams meet, but you can only tell whether you made the right decision on the trade at the end of the conference," said Cone.

“Hopefully, our teams meet in the finals. That would be really, really interesting," he added.

The Kings have lost their last outing against San Miguel Beer, 102-94, in a game where the Beermen’s starters dominated their Ginebra counterparts, 87-41.

With interest more on the Kings-Aces tussle, the defending champion Beermen quietly gun for their sixth win in seven outings when they face Rain or Shine.

The Beermen are currently on top of the standings with a 5-1 card while the Elasto Painters are tied for fourth to sixth spots with the Kings and the Llamados (3-2).

Fresh from a 12-day rest, the Elasto Painters are also in a high after a 91-80 win over the Coca-Cola Tigers last April 16. – JVP/RCJ, GMANews.TV

Ace gunner Miller traded for Baguio

2010-04-28T01:55:00.001-07:00

By WAYLON GALVEZ
April 28, 2010, 4:15pm

Just as everybody is taking the much-needed rest after the blockbuster PBA All-Star Festivities in Puerto Princesa over the weekend, Alaska Milk, in a stunning move, traded two-time MVP Willie Miller to Ginebra in exchange for Cyrus Baguio.

The deal was consummated yesterday and both parties claimed their teams will be better by the exchange.

Miller, the 5-foot 11 spitfire who earned the moniker the “Thriller,” for his daredevil moves, adds a new dimension to a Ginebra team which, before he came on board, already teemed with star power.

Alaska coach Tim Cone said it was Miller who had sought for the trade, although no reason was given why the player asked to move to another team.

Cone said that he will surely miss Miller, whom he considers as “one of the real good guys in the league.”

“He made it known to us for the last couple of years that he has wanted to be traded. It was only now that the Aces got what it felt a good deal,” Cone said.

“I think it’s a good deal for us,” said Joaqui Trillo, Alaska’s alternate governor to the PBA Board.

Miller is known as a prolific scorer and a fine closer – traits that landed him a spot in the Philippine team that finished 8th in the FIBA-Asia Championship in Tianjin, China.

Baguio, who blossomed into a fine all-around player during his stint with Barako Bull before he was acquired by Ginebra last conference from Air21, was also a member of that team handled by coach Yeng Guiao.

Interestingly, Ginebra and Alaska battle each other at 7:30 p.m. Friday at the Araneta Coliseum.

This will be Miller’s fourth team in the PBA after starting his pro career with Red Bull, which took him as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2001 Rookie Draft. He also played for Talk ’N Text.

Miller, the PBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 2002 and 2007, will have as teammates reigning MVP Jayjay Helterbrand, Mark Caguioa, Ronald Tubid, and Celino Cruz.

Ginebra mentor Jong Uichico said that he would rather “wait and see” on how to utilize a talented player like Miller, who will have his first practice session Thursday with the Kings at the Green Meadows gym in Green Hills, San Juan.

So far this conference, the 32-year-old Miller averaged 17 point, three rebounds and 4.5 assists.

It’s interesting to see if the native of Olongapo City will start for Ginebra or will come off the bench behind Caguioa and Helterbrand.

Both Miller and Baguio earn maximum salaries of P350,000 and their contracts will expire at the end of July 2010.

No security for imports

2010-04-27T00:54:00.001-07:00

source: Joaquin Henson | philstar.com

In the PBA, the bottom line is what counts and imports whose teams are floundering will likely get the pink slip unless the tide turns regardless of their personal stats.

Sometimes, even imports on winning teams are cut if the prognosis is they’re not good enough for a championship. There’s no job security when it comes to playing as an import because you’re only as good as your last game.

Take Barangay Ginebra’s Awvee Storey who’s the only import in town with NBA credentials. He showed up with a resume that listed stints with the New Jersey Nets, Washington Wizards and Milwaukee Bucks but the word is coach Joseph Uichico has given up on the former Arizona State guard after scoring only 13 points in an 86-72 loss to Sta. Lucia Realty and 14 in a 102-94 setback to San Miguel Beer.

Storey’s inconsistency must have caused Uichico headaches. He had 33 points in a 97-90 win over Talk ‘N’ Text, 20 in a 98-91 decision over Coca-Cola and 40 in a 100-98 squeaker over Rain or Shine. For a team with lofty expectations, a 3-2 start just isn’t acceptable, prompting Uichico to call in Mildon Ambres of Southern Nazarene.

Ambres, 25, was named the NBA D-League’s first Most Improved Player awardee a few weeks ago for raising his scoring clip from 6.5 to 14.5 points with the Idaho Stampede this season. He was one of only two Idaho players to see action in the team’s 50 games.

Uichico’s gamble is Ambres will play with the same intensity he displayed in the D-League.

The downside is Ambres had a so-so varsity career. After averaging 21.2 points and 14 rebounds as a senior at Opelousas High School in 2001-02, Ambres joined the Louisiana State University varsity but couldn’t crack the lineup. He wound up sitting out two seasons before gaining eligibility at Southern Mississippi in 2004-05, averaging 7.7 points. In 2005-06, Ambres averaged 6.4 points in 31 games with the Golden Eagles then transferred to Southern Nazarene in the NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics).

At Southern Nazarene, Ambres finally hit his stride, averaging 15.2 points and 8.2 rebounds. He led the varsity to the Sooners Athletic Conference title, firing 24 points in Southern Nazarene’s 82-68 win over Northwestern Oklahoma State.

Ambres played for CSU Caudripol Brasov in Romania, averaging 18.1 points and 8.5 rebounds in 26 games in 2007-08 then suited up in the D-League.

“I’m extremely happy for Mildon as he earns the well-deserved award,” said Stampede coach Bob MacKinnon. “Being honored as the most improved player in a league that is all about development is such a great tribute to how hard Mildon worked and the dedication of the coaching staff this past season.”

Ambres scored in twin digits in 38 of 50 games and registered a season-high 32 points in a 165-153 overtime victory over the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. “Mildon demonstrated an unwavering commitment to his craft, working hard every night to improve all aspects of his game,” said D-League vice president of basketball operations Chris Alpert. “His dedication to improving his skills is directly in line with the D-League’s core mission of developing the top basketball prospects in the world and I congratulate Mildon on his impressive accomplishment.”

Ambres is slated to make his PBA debut against Alaska at the Araneta Coliseum on Friday.

* * * *

B-Meg Derby Ace will also parade a new import in the Llamados’ next outing against San Miguel Beer at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium this Sunday. Lorenzo Wade hasn’t scored less than 20 points in five games so far but B-Meg’s 3-2 record is no cause for celebration even as the Llamados’ two losses (79-76 to Coca-Cola and 83-81 to Alaska) could’ve gone either way.

You couldn’t ask anything more from Wade who’s extremely coachable. In B-Meg’s 93-80 romp over Barako Coffee last Wednesday, the former San Diego State star produced 27 points, 17 rebounds, seven assists, three steals and three blocked shots in 39 solid minutes. But coach Ryan Gregorio isn’t taking any chances. Wade has been relegated to the injured list while Gregorio tries out Clif Brown of Niagara University. If Brown doesn’t work out, Gregorio has the option of reactivating Wade.

Brown, 25, is a livewire on the court unlike the laid-back Wade. As a senior in 2006-07, he hit 32 points, including 6-of-11 triples, to power Niagara to a 77-69 win over Florida A&M in an NCAA play-in game to advance to the tournament first round as the No. 16 seed against top-ranked Kansas. The triumph over Florida A&M was Niagara’s first in 37 years in the NCAA playoffs. Earlier that season, Brown pumped in a career-high 33 points, including 4-of-5 triples, in a 74-63 decision over St. Bonaventure. Brown wound up averaging 16.3 points, 9.7 rebounds and 33.7 minutes in 33 games.

Air21 will make another switch, starting with Keena Young, trying out Jason Forte and now banking on Reggie Larry. Coach Yeng Guiao is hoping Larry will trigger a reversal of fortunes as the Express has lost four in a row. Young opened the conference on a sour note with Air21 going 1-3. Young was particularly pathetic in the Express’ 92-75 loss to B-Meg last April 9. He was scoreless in the first period en route to an anemic 13-point effort and couldn’t hold Wade’s pants down. Wade got away with 29 points in the rout.

Forte, who never averaged in double figures in four years with Southern Mississippi, failed to turn things around for Air21 in two outings. Getting impatient and feeling a sense of urgency, Guiao is giving Larry a chance to strut his wares.

Larry was close to playing for Purefoods last year but withdrew before the Fiesta Conference started because of an injury. Now, the former Boise State forward has the opportunity to show what he could’ve done with the Tender Juicy Giants.

Larry averaged 14.1 points and 8.1 rebounds as a junior college transfer at Boise State, where former PBA star Vince Hizon once played, in 2006-07. He started in 26 of the varsity’s 31 games and earned a reputation as a force down low, blocking 44 shots and collecting 22 steals. In his senior season, Larry hit at a 19.4 clip as Boise State posted a 25-9 record and made it to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 14 years.

Storey’s tale continues; Hatfield joining Kings soon

2010-03-28T18:07:00.003-07:00

source: Francis T.J. Ochoa | inquirer.net

WITH STILL ABOUT FOUR MINUTES left in Friday night’s second game, fans started to file out of the Cuneta Astrodome, certain that Barangay Ginebra, trailing Sta. Lucia, 61-77, was doomed.

“It was a bad game to watch,” said coach jong Uichico of the Kings’s 72-86 loss to the Realtors in the PBA Fiesta Conference.

A little later, he made a slight correction.

“It was a bad game to watch, it was a bad game to play in and it was a bad game to coach,” he said.

For the fans that went home early, disappointed that the crowd darlings failed to match their opening day victory against a powerhouse Talk ‘N Text squad, the question that lingered was: Was it the end of the story for the Kings’ import.

Not yet. As far as the soft-spoken, celebrated champion coach is concerned, Awvee Storey is staying, despite a poor 13-point effort against the Realtors that exposed some of his weaknesses.

“Everybody has his bad game,” Uichico told the Inquirer. “He deserves a chance to prove himself. It’s just been a couple of games.”

Against Sta. Lucia, the Ginebra mentor admitted that the Kings were “out-defended. Take away a couple of three-pointers in the endgame and you would see that we played a good defensive game. But they out-defended us.”

“We’ve been struggling against Sta. Lucia this season,” Uichico noted, after losing to the Realtors also twice in the previous tournament.

So now, he is willing to wait.

He’ll wait for Storey to find the form that made his debut an impressive one and wait also for the arrival of one of the toughest forwards ever to don a Ginebra uniform: Rudy Hatfield.

“He’s due in about two weeks or so,” said the Kings coach.

Hatfield has already agreed in principle to play for a year for the Kings, meaning the rebounding and defensive whiz will also suit up for next year’s Philippine Cup and shore up a Ginebra frontline that was picked apart by Alaska in the semifinals of the previous conference.

And in the meantime, Storey’s tale continues. And Uichico hopes that Friday night would be the last time fans head for the exits before the final buzzer sounds.

Sta.Lucia rebounds with big over Ginebra

2010-03-28T18:07:00.001-07:00

source: PBA.ph

Getting an elbow from Ronald Tubid, Anthony Johnson retaliated at the whole Barangay Ginebra team, sparking a key run that carried Sta. Lucia Realty to an emphatic win.

Johnson pumped in back-to-back three-pointers right after being felled by Tubid and the Realtors broke away en route to an 86-72 victory over the Kings Friday in the 2010 PBA Fiesta Conference at the Cuneta Astrodome.

The Realtors nailed their first win after being beaten by the Barako Energy Coffee Masters in the tournament opener Sunday.

“We came out with great energy tonight, determined to make up for our bad showing in our first game,” said Sta. Lucia coach Boyet Fernandez.

“I’m happy the boys started strong and finished even stronger. Magandang character ang ipinakita nila,” Fernandez added.

Johnson logged 22 points and 13 rebounds while Kelly Williams added 13 points, six rebounds and four assists as they led the SLR charge in foiling Ginebra’s bid for early leadership in the reinforced tourney.

For Ginebra, it didn’t help that import Awvee Storey was far less productive than his debut game.

Storey was able to finish in double figures only after making six points in the last two minutes of play. He made only 13 points but grabbed 22 rebounds.

Williams did a good job defending the Ginebra import.

“He’s strong. I just kept a body on him and did my best to keep him off the glass,” said Williams.

The 2008 MVP winner also had sterling efforts offensively, putting in his share in a 19-7 run SLR unleashed to get an 80-61 spread entering the last three minutes of play.

The Realtors actually seized the early initiatives, taking the half at 44-39 and sitting on a 61-54 cushion after the first three quarters of play.

Ryan Reyes and Nelbert Omolon were two other Realtors who finished in double figures with 14 and 12, respectively.

With the Realtors putting the game beyond reach early, Ginebra coach Jong Uichico used the opportunity to break in new recruit John Ferriols and newly reactivated Junthy Valenzuela. (SB)

The scores:

Sta. Lucia 86 - Johnson 22, Reyes 14, Williams 13, Omolon 12, Urbiztondo 9, Mendoza 8,Custodio 4, Espinas 2, Aquino 2, Daa 0, Misolas 0.

Ginebra 72 - Storey 13, Helterbrand 12, Baguio 9, Caguioa 8, Intal 7, Tubid 6, Menk 6, De Ocampo 4, Cruz 3, Wilson 2, Villanueva 2, Ferriols 0, Valenzuela 0.

Quarterscores: 25-20, 44-39, 61-54, 86-72

James Yap, Pingris lead All-Star balloting

2010-03-24T18:08:00.000-07:00

source: pba.ph

If the ongoing poll to determine the starters for the North and South teams for the 2010 PBA All-Star Weekend may be used as a gauge, then it may be safe to say that James Yap is currently the league’s biggest draw.

Named Best Player of Conference and Finals MVP of the recent Philippine Cup, Yap garnered 28,844 votes to lead all vote getters and appeared o n the way to securing his fifth straight start for the South dating back to his rookie year in 2004.

Interestingly, players of Barangay Ginebra and Derby Ace (formerly Purefoods) garnered the most number of votes after the early tally. The two teams have four players each as provisional starters.

Next to Yap, teammate Mark Pingris received the second highest votes with 20,540, making him the top candidate among the big men for the North.

Also taking the provisional starting spots for the North are reigning league MVP Jayjay Helterbrand (15,916), Paul Artadi (13,664), Kerby Raymundo (19,558) and JC Intal (15,792).

Fans still have a chance to cast their votes until April 4. Polling booths can be found at game venues either at the Araneta Coliseum or Cuneta Astrodome. Online voting is also available at main.pba.ph/votes.asp.

The rest of the players who will comprise the North and South teams will be chosen by the league’s 10 head coaches. A coach however, cannot cast his vote his own player.

Behind MVP Peter June Simon, the South edged out the North in overtime, 163-158, the last time the two teams met in the 2008 All-Star Game in Bacolod City. (DBC)

Storey with happy ending?

2010-03-22T17:42:00.000-07:00

source: Joaquin Henson | philstar.com

For Barangay Ginebra import Awvee Storey, life on the basketball court is like an unfolding tale that he hopes will have a happy ending.

In the PBA Fiesta Conference, Ginebra coach Joseph Uichico would like nothing more than a Storey-book championship finish.

“Awvee’s asset is his work ethic,” said Uichico. “He rebounds and defends. As for our team, we are all healthy at last, hoping to remain healthy. I’m not used to having these many bodies for quite a long time and am adjusting myself.”

Uichico referred to Mark Caguioa, Jay-Jay Helterbrand, Junthy Valenzuela and Eric Menk who’ve been in and out of the lineup because of injuries the last several conferences.

Aside from reactivating the often-injured stars, Uichico recently picked up Yancy de Ocampo and John Ferriols to bolster the Kings’ roster. Rudy Hatfield’s return next month will be another boost. However, working De Ocampo and Ferriols into Ginebra’s system may take some time, admitted Uichico, as “both of them just came in.”

But in a conference where imports take center stage, the focus of Uichico’s attention is Storey – just like it was Chris Alexander when Ginebra bagged the 2008 title and David Noel when the Kings took runner-up honors last season.

Storey, who turns 33 on April 18, played three years for Arizona State, the school that produced the likes of San Miguel team consultant Alton Lister, former PBA import Mario Bennett, Byron Scott, Lionel Hollins, Fat Lever and “Jumpin’” Joe Caldwell. A varsity teammate was Eddie House, newly acquitted by the New York Knicks.

Storey is the only import in town with NBA credentials. He has suited up for the New Jersey Nets, Washington Wizards and Milwaukee Bucks in three seasons, averaging 2.4 points in 60 total games. The 6-5 3/16 guard-forward from Chicago has played in leagues all over the world – in Germany, Korea, Venezuela, Australia, NBDL, CBA and USBL. What sets him apart from most globetrotting cagers is his college diploma – Storey earned a degree in interdisciplinary studies, majoring in communications and sociology, at Arizona State. In 2001, he worked for the Fox Sports network as a production department intern, preparing for a life after hoops.

At the moment, Storey is still doing what he does best – play the game that he loves with a passion.

At Arizona State, Storey gained a reputation as a bruising defender and a versatile scorer. “He’s a difficult cover for guys who are big because of his quickness and for guys who are smaller because he can take them inside and overpower them,” said his varsity coach Rob Evans. “He’s going to give you 15 to 18-foot range and he takes advantage of his abilities which are attacking the basket, rebounding and defending. He’s a tremendous talent. He’s strong, tough physically and mentally. He can get to the basket and create his own shot.”

When the Bucks signed up Storey, then-general manager Larry Harris described him as “a hard-nosed, aggressive player who brings depth to our roster at the guard and small forward positions – he’s an excellent athlete and a solid defender.”

As an Arizona State senior in 2001-02, Storey sat out three games because of bleeding behind a swollen retina but came back to score 29 points against University of Nevada at Las Vegas in his final collegiate game. In 85 career games at Arizona State, Storey posted 16 double-doubles.

Two tainted chapters in Storey’s basketball life involved a misdemeanor arrest and a punching incident at practice. In 2006, Storey and Washington teammate Gilbert Arenas were arrested for disobeying police orders at a riotous Memorial Day celebration of hip-hop music and urban beach culture in Miami Beach. Storey was arrested for blocking traffic in the middle of a street and got off the hook with a $250 donation to the local police assistance trust fund. He was one of 557 arrested during the festivities. That same year, Storey was suspended and eventually cut by Dakota in the NBDL for punching Lithuanian 7-2 teammate Martynas Andriuskevicius at practice. Andriuskevicius was hospitalized with a severe concussion, a minor fracture of the skull and a bruise on the left side of the brain.

A Storey facet is his never-say-die attitude, which fits right in with Ginebra’s philosophy.

When Storey red-shirted for Arizona State in 1998-99 after transferring from Illinois, he was extremely vocal about how the varsity team played in losing to New Orleans in the dugout. “He’s a potential leader, having directed a fierce dressing room tirade at his teammates after a loss to New Orleans – as a redshirt, no less,” reported Jeff Faraudo in the Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook. “No one challenged his right to do so.”

Before moving to the PBA, Storey played for the New Zealand Breakers in the Australian league. He played only nine games for the Breakers. Coach Andrej Lemanis said Storey “acted like a true professional” but was released because “things weren’t working out and we needed to make a change.”

In 2005, Storey led the Wonjun TG Sambo Xers to the Korean league championship. That’s the kind of finish Uichico is expecting from Storey in the PBA and if that happens, it’ll be the “Greatest Storey Ever Told.”

Storey, Caguioa lead Ginebra past Talk 'N Text

2010-03-21T17:50:00.001-07:00

source: PBA.ph

The Barangay Ginebra Kings and import Awvee Storey ended their first game together with a good story to tell. Storey had a decent debut in the local pro league, coming through with 33 points and 16 rebounds to lead the Kings to a 97-90 win over the Talk n Text Tropang Texters in the opening day of the PBA Fiesta Conference at the Araneta Coliseum Sunday.

Mark Caguioa, Ronald Tubid and Jayjay Helterbrand contributed at least 11 points each as the Kings kept their streak over Texters in their head-on duels dating back to the recent Philippine Cup.

The two teams figured in a best-of-five quarters duel in the last conference with Ginebra emerging the winner, completing a comeback from a 0-2 deficit. Storey definitely had a big hand as the Kings made a triumphant Fiesta Cup start after finishing fourth in the all-Filipino tourney.

A product of Arizona State with a three-year stint in the NBA, Storey went 13-of-25 from the field and 6-of-6 from the stripe, and also got two assists, one steal and one block in 38 minutes of play. He more than held his own against Shawn Daniels, a veteran PBA import with three conferences played with Air21. “Storey is not that spectacular but he’s an all-around player.He’s got little of everything and we’re hoping he can compliment the team,” said Ginebra coach Jong Uichico. “He’s a hard worker as he’s been showing in practice. Hopefully, he continues to be that way and really compliment the team,” Uichico added.

“Maganda result ng first game. But he’s now scouted so things would be different in the next games.” Storey got off to a good start and showed staying power, helping the Kings to a finish steadier than that of the Texters. Emotions appeared to be still high in the early rematch of the two teams that engaged in a passionate playoff series in the last conference.

At one point in the second half, Ranidel de Ocampo sent Storey to the floor on a hard tackle meriting a flagrant foul call from the referees. It would be remembered that De Ocampo himself committed an infraction that triggered a controversy in Game Four of the Ginebra-Talk n Text quarters duel in the Philippine Cup. Daniels, De Ocampo and Mark Cardona led the Talk n Text challenge as they fought the Kings through 14 deadlocks and 22 lead changes.

Daniels churned out 19 points and 16 rebounds, Cardona tallied 19 points, three steals and two rebounds while De Ocampo chipped in 14 points and three rebounds. Storey and Caguioa, however, outplayed and outscored Daniels and Cardona in the payoff period, fueling a hot charge with their combined output of 23 points. (SB)

The scores:

Ginebra 97 - Storey 33, Caguioa 19, Tubid 16, Helterbrand 11, Baguio 8, Menk 4, Intal 2, Cruz 2, Villanueva 2, De Ocampo 0.

Talk N' Text 90 - Daniels 19, Cardona 19, De Ocampo 14, Carey 8, Alapag 8, Yee 7, Castro 7, Dillinger 6, Aban 2, Peek 0, Belasco 0.

Quarterscores: 15-21, 38-39, 64-63, 97-90

New-look Barako Coffee stuns Sta. Lucia

2010-03-21T17:48:00.000-07:00

gmanews.tv

Barako Coffee made sure everybody took notice right on opening day of the KFC-PBA Fiesta Cup.

Sammy Monroe showed how prolific a scorer he is by exploding for 39 points and powering the Coffee Masters to a 97-93 upset of the Sta. Lucia Realtors in the curtain-raiser ushering the import-laden conference at the Araneta Coliseum Sunday.

Monroe, who had stint in Mexico prior to signing up with Barako Coffee, was 13-of-24 from the field and also had 12 rebounds, while making two big free throws that shattered the game’s final deadlock and put the Coffee Makers on top for good, 90-88.

New recruit Al Vergara then preserved the stunning win by nailing back-to-back crucial jumpers in the final 85 seconds that put the fight out of the rallying Realtors.

“We just won the first game. There are 17 games more and it’s still a long way to go," said Junel Baculi of his debut win as PBA coach.

“We have to work our way up because we wanted to get out of the rut," added the new mentor of Barako Coffee, which finished at the bottom of the standings in the last three conferences.

Leo Najorda, one of the few remnants of Barako Coffee’s predecessor – Red Bull – added 12 markers while Vergara, who previously suited up for Purefoods and later, with the Singapore Slingers in the Asean Basketball League (ABL), had eight along with Rob Wainwright and Rob Reyes.

Veteran import Anthony Johnson exploded for 41 points and collected 13 rebounds for the Realtors, who fought back from an 11-point deficit in the final 5:20 to tie the game at 88 with 2:32 left.

Gabby Espinas added 14 points and nine rebounds, while Ryan Reyes contributed 13 points, seven rebounds and five assists for Sta. Lucia, which had new faces in Bonbon Custodio, the player the ball club got for trading Joseph Yeo to San Miguel, and Don Belano.

Kelly Williams was limited to just six points on 3-of-8 shooting, but came through with the game’s highlight reel play with a left-handed, follow-up dunk off a missed shot in the waning seconds of the third period for a 76-68 count. - GMANews.TV

The scores:

Barako Coffee 97 - Monroe 39, Najorda 12, Vergara 8, Reyes 8, Wainwright 8, Menor 5, Dimaunahan 5, Duncil4, Aljamal 4, Gaco 2, Faundo 2, Alonzo 0.

Sta. Lucia 93 - Johnson 41, Espinas 14, Reyes 13, Custodio 8, Williams 6, Mendoza 4, Misolas 3, Omolon 2, Aquino 2, Waters 0, Urbiztondo 0, Belano 0.

Quarterscores: 25-23; 44-46; 78-68; 97-93.

Uichico dropping player for Rudy Hatfield

2010-03-18T18:11:00.002-07:00

source: Waylon Galvez | mb.com.ph

Rudy Hatfield is making a comeback after an absence of three years, raising concerns about his fitness and readiness to compete against young players in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).

Still, Barangay Ginebra won’t pass up the opportunity of having the six-foot-three veteran on the team out to regain the PBA Fiesta Cup it won two years ago.

“He’s (Hatfield) always a positive addition and I’m sure he still has the same heart and intensity. Also, he’s a stabilizing presence, not only in the locker room and on the court but also even in practice,” Ginebra coach Jong Uichico said. “He also last played here three years ago. I really want to see him play, not only in practice but in an actual game,” he added.

Hatfield is set to arrive April 6.

Uichico, however, concedes that Hatfield needs time to work himself back to shape.

“He’s 32... and at that age you may have lost a step or two, a hustle here or there,” said Uichico who now has to drop one player from his current roster to accommodate the do-it-all forward.

He will choose from among 6-6 Eric Menk, 6-3 JC Intal, 6-5 Billy Mamaril, 6-3 Willie Wilson, 6-2 Sunday Salvacion, as well as newly acquired 6-4 John Ferriols and 6-8 Yancy de Ocampo.

One of these players would be placed on the reserve list, providing the opportunity for other teams to grab him as Unrestricted Free Agent with Rights to Salary.

Ferriols had been taken from Alaska as an unrestricted free agent. Previously, 6-8 Sam Eman was taken by the Aces from San Miguel Beer.

The Kings lost to San Miguel Beer in a classic seven-game title showdown in the same conference last year.

In the previous all-Filipino Philippine Cup, Ginebra was swept by the Aces, 4-0, in the semifinals.

In the Fiesta Cup opener on Sunday, the Kings will parade ex-NBA player Awvee Storey against Talk ‘N Text in the main game of a twin-bill at the Araneta Coliseum.

In six seasons that began in 2000, Hatfield averaged double-double 13.4 points and 10.8 rebounds, with 3.1 assists in 227 games. He left for the United States following the Kings’ title triumph in the 2006-2007 Philippine Cup to be with bride-to-be Bethany.

Games Sunday (Araneta Coliseum)
4 p.m. — Barako Coffee vs Sta. Lucia
6:30 p.m. — Ginebra vs Talk ‘N Text

PBA: Early grudge showdown

2010-03-18T18:11:00.001-07:00

source: Joel Orellana | businessmirror.com.ph

Two teams that figured in a controversial quarterfinal series in the previous conference face off right on opening day of the KFC-Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Fiesta Conference on Sunday at the Araneta Coliseum.

Barangay Ginebra and Talk ’N Text, which battled in a Philippine Cup quarterfinal series marred by a walkout that cost the Texters more than P1 million in fines, square off at 6:30 p.m. right after the opening game tussle between the “new look” Barako Coffee Masters and Sta. Lucia Realty at 4 p.m.

Ginebra, which lost to sister team San Miguel Beer in the semifinals of the All-Filipino tournament, strengthened its frontline by acquiring Yancy de Ocampo in a trade with Air21 and signing free agent John Ferriols.

Plus, the Kings are expecting 32-year-old rebound demon Rudy Hatfield to rejoin the team next month.

“He’s [Hatfield] always a positive addition and I’m sure he still has the same heart and intensity,” said Uichico, who now faces a dilemma on who to relegate in the reserve list once Hatfield joins the team.

“Also, he is a stabilizing presence, not only in the locker room and on the court but also even in practice. Kaya siguradong makakatulong siya, not only with my team pero kahit na saang team,” he added.

Hatfield played six seasons in the PBA and was part of the Ginebra team that ruled the 2006-07 Philippine Cup before returning to the US to help his bride-to-be Bethany sort out some problems from her previous marriage.

Uichico said that aside from resuming his basketball career in the country, Hatfield will also be involved in missionary work.

The Kings are parading former National Basketball Association campaigner Awvee Storey, whom Uichico described as an all-around player

“He’s a hard worker, nothing flashy. A defender, rebounder and a team player,” he said.

Talk ’N Text, also added three role players in a trade with the Express, giving up de Ocampo and Renren Ritualo.

Debuting for the Tropang Texters are Mark Yee, JR Quinahan and Aaron Aban, while coach Chot Reyes decided to get back import Shawn Daniels after their original choice, Erick Hicks, fell short of expectations.

“I’m very pleased with our practice the past week and I’m looking forward to a great conference for us,” said Reyes, who failed to defend their Philippine Cup title after losing to the Kings in a quarterfinals marred by a walkout.

Reyes added that the new additions, including the burly Daniels, will provide new dimensions to the team known for its scoring prowess.

“Iyung mga basurero, mga pulot-pulot, depensa, hustle,” he said. “Sila ’yung magbibigay ng ibang dimensions sa team namin and I’m very happy with them.”

Daniels, who is fresh from a stint in Puerto Rico, arrived on Thursday morning.

“He’s exactly the kind of import we need, a team player who can complement the locals and has the defensive attitude,” said Reyes.

Ferriols to boost Ginebra line-up for coming Fiesta Cup

2010-03-17T17:16:00.001-07:00

source: gmanews.tv

Barangay Ginebra, a talented but aging team like the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA, has bolstered its frontline – by securing veteran John Ferriols.

Ferriols’ acquisition by Ginebra became official on Wednesday night when the 35-year-old former Metropolitan Basketball Association (MBA) most valuable player (MVP) became an unrestricted free agent.

Alaska Milk put the 6-foot-5 lefty center/forward on the reserved list to make room for new recruit big man – 6-foot-9 Samigue Eman.

Ginebra took advantage as Ferriols officially became an unrestricted free agent being put on the reserved list.

Alaska team manager and board representative Joaqui Trillo said, in a telephone interview, that they’re putting Ferriols on the reserved list. Eman, who was picked up by the Aces during the latter stretch of the Philippine Cup, moved up to join the Aces’ regular roster.

“He’s still with us, but he can be picked up by any team as long as he agrees to play with them," added Trillo.

Ginebra coach Jong Uichico, whose team just picked up 6-foot-9 Yancy de Ocampo from Air21 a few days ago, was happy to have an additional frontliner in Ferriols.

The multi-titled mentor, however, said he wants young players who can provide support to his aging veterans, who may have to play reduced minutes to be preserved in the long stretch.

“Let’s face it. Our team is not getting any younger. We have a 35-year-old Ferriols coming over and we have a 33-year-old Rudy Hatfield returning. So as veterans Mark Caguioa and Jayjay Helterbrand who are not getting any younger either and if maglalaro pa si Johnny Abarrientos, we will have the oldest player on the squad," said Uichico.

“We need young players that could somehow eat up 10 to 12 minutes from our veterans and hopefully preserved our older guys for the long stretch," he added.

Ginebra’s sister team, San Miguel Beer, a squad loaded in offensive firepower, had added another marquee player in Joseph Yeo, who was plucked form Sta. Lucia in exchange for Bonbon Custodio.

Yeo will be included on a rotation that has Dondon Hontiveros, Lordy Tugade and Jonas Villanueva. The team recently added Alex Cabagnot, who will also share minutes with Denok Miranda and Olsen Racela.

Trading not yet over

More trade are expected to take place as teams get busy retooling their respective lineups before the opening of the Fiesta Conference.

A source, who requested anonymity, said that the Beermen and the Gin Kings are not done yet with their wheeling and dealing.

“San Miguel are loaded with guards while Ginebra still needs to bolster some positions," said the source. “I believe there will be more movements in the next few days," said the source.

Speaking for Ginebra, Uichico admitted there are still offers left on the table.

“There were offers on the table, but I don’t see it happening before Sunday or the next few days or weeks," said Uichico. “Bottom line, our team is not getting any younger and we want young, quality players who will play as backup for either JayJay Helterbrand or some of our veteran frontliners." – GMANews.TV

SMB sends Custodio to SLR for Yeo

2010-03-16T17:40:00.000-07:00

source: Nelson Beltran | philstar.com

San Miguel Beer continued to rebuild its aging lineup, acquiring Joseph Yeo from Sta. Lucia in exchange for Bonbon Custodio five days before the opening of the 2010 PBA Fiesta Conference at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Beermen, who settled for third place after losing to the eventual champions Purefoods Giants in the recent Philippine Cup, have bolstered their backcourt rotation with Yeo’s acquisition, which came on the heels of an earlier trade deal involving Alex Cabagnot and Mike Cortez.

Yeo, a former La Salle standout, blossomed into a fine playmaker with Sta. Lucia after a forgettable stint with Coca-Cola in the 2006-07 campaign.

In his second season with Sta. Lucia last year, Yeo effectively played his off-the-bench role, winding up as the team’s second-best scorer behind Kelly Williams with a 13.5-point average.

He also normed 3.6 rebounds and 2.2 assists in a remarkable season, prompting the team management to give him a three-year contract-extension worth the maximum pay allowed in the league.

Meanwhile, Custodio, a product of University of the East, is in his second year in the pro league, also playing the off-the-bench role creditably.

The only rookie in the star-studded, talent-laden Beermen squad last year, Custodio performed well to earn a spot on the All-Rookie selection by the PBA Press Corps. He played for San Miguel’s farm team in the PBL before being elevated to the pro ranks. He was the eighth pick in the 2008 annual draft.

Ginebra mas palaban sa pagputok ng PBA Fiesta Conference!

2010-03-15T17:41:00.000-07:00

source: Russell Cadayona (Pilipino Star Ngayon)

MANILA, Philippines - Kumpiyansa si coach Jong Uichico na malaki ang magiging pagbabago sa Barangay Ginebra sa nalalapit na 2009-2010 PBA Fiesta Conference.

Ito, ayon kay Uichico, ay dahil na rin sa pagkakahugot nila kay 6-foot-9 Yancy De Ocampo mula sa Air21 para kina Rich Alvarez at Doug Kramer at ang pagkuha kay 6’6 import Awvee Storey.

“I just think that the other teams are getting stronger than us in terms of manpower,” ani Uichico. “We are injecting new blood, new players in the team.”

Si De Ocampo, dinala ng Talk ‘N Text sa Air21 kasama si Ren-Ren Ritualo, Jr. kapalit nina 6’6 JR Quiñahan, Mark Yee at Aaron Aban, ang magiging lehitimong sentro ng Gin Kings.

Makakatuwang ni De Ocampo sa shaded lane sina 6’5 Eric Menk, 6’5 Rico Villanueva at 6’5 Billy Mamaril

Kung may kailangan pa si Uichico, ito ay isang pointguard na makakatulong nina 2009 PBA Most Valuable Player Jayjay Helterbrand, Mark Caguioa, Ronald Tubid at Cyrus Baguio.

Lumutang ang balitang gustong hugutin ng Ginebra si Fil-Am Alex Cabagnot mula sa Air21 para kay Baguio.

Inaasahan naman ni Uichico na makakasabay sa kanilang sistema ang 32-anyos namang si Storey, isang NBA veteran at minsan nang naging kakampi ni NBA superstar Gilbert Arenas sa Washington Wizards.

“He’s an all-around player. Hopefully, kapag nadagdagan na ‘yung team ng mga kulang na players he will fit into the system of the team,” wika ni Uichico kay Storey.

Ang 6’6 na si Storey ay produkto ng Arizona State at 16 beses na nagtala ng double-double performance sa kanyang 85-game career.

Noong 2000-01, nakatanggap siya ng Pac-10 Honorable Mention honours matapos maglista ng mga career-high sa puntos (13.1) at rebounds (9.1).

PBA celebs play ‘Pacfans’ and boxing buffs in Pacquiao-Clottey

2010-03-14T17:32:00.000-07:00

source: Rey Joble | gmanews.tv

It’s been a normal practice. The entire nation always stands still every time pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao climbs the ring.

On Sunday, officials and coaches from the Philippine Basketball Association took time off their regular routines to watch Pacquiao defend his World Boxing Organization welterweight title against Joshua Clottey of Ghana.

True-blue "Pacfans," they watched the fight with great anticipation and many of them ended up quite disappointed with the way the Ghanaian challenger fought the best boxer in the world today.

“Sanay na kasi tayo sa mga knockouts ni Pacquiao eh," PBA commissioner Sonny Barrios told GMANews.TV. “Even ako nag-aantay na pabagsakin ni Pacquiao si Clottey, who suddenly became content surviving the fight than try winning it."

Coaches Chot Reyes of Talk ‘N Text, Tim Cone of Alaska, Bo Perasol of Coca-Cola, Siot Tanquingcen of San Miguel Beer, Asean Basketball League mentor Louie Alas of the Philippine Patriots and former Sta. Lucia bench tactician Alfrancis Chua also had things to say about the bout.

“I watched through my CIGNAL TV. All I can say is, itong taga-Ghana, nakakawalang gana," Reyes wrote on his Twitter account.

Reyes also urged former pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather Jr. to go and face Pacquiao in what could be the biggest bout ever. The two boxers were the ones supposed to battle Sunday, but the negotiations bogged down due to disagreement over dope-testing procedures.

“Come on, Mayweather. Stop running away from the only fight left this century," said Reyes, the only coach to win the PBA All-Filipino championship for three different teams.

Cone, whose team is currently in Cebu to play the Niños and have their team-building sessions, tuned in to the radio to get updates on Pacquiao’s fight. The multi-titled mentor said his import, Diamon Simpson, is a huge Pacquiao fan and was one of those very excited to follow the fight.

“The whole Alaska team is here at the beach waiting for the Pacman show. But who cares for Alaska, this is Pacquiao’s Day," said Cone on his Twitter account.

For Perasol, they got themselves a pay-per-view telecast and even invited their neighbors to watch with them. Like many, the coach and his gang ended up frustrated.

“It’s very frustrating in a way. Boxing is supposed to be offense and defense. Naging offense si Pacman and defense naman si Clottey," said Perasol in a text message.

Tanquingcen anticipated the bout won’t be as exciting given the fighting style of Clottey and so he didn’t avail of a PPV telecast and opted to watch the bout on a delayed basis.

Alas and Chua shared different views.

“In a way, happy na rin ako dahil nanalo pa rin si Pacquiao," said Alas, who watched a PPV screening at the Alabang Town Center.

Chua had mixed emotions.

“Pangit ng laban. Ayaw lumaban nung kalaban," said Chua, who watched through his friend’s Playdium. “The good thing is, Pacquiao won." - GMANews.TV

Beermen keep Cabagnot as trade stalls sans conduit

2010-03-11T16:51:00.001-08:00

By Arman Carandang

03/12/2010

San Miguel Beer has decided to keep Alex Cabagnot for the meantime, giving the small ball handler an opportunity to fit into coach Siot Tanquincen’s system in preparation for the PBA Fiesta Conference, set to unfold in the next few days.

Reports had it that the 27-year-old southpaw guard would be going to Barangay Ginebra which is in need of a healthy sentinel owing to health problems of the Kings’ three top guards — Jayjay Helterbrand, Celino Cruz and Johnny Abarrientos.

That was the original plan, but in a sudden change of heart, SMB opted to give Cabagnot a chance to prove his worth for the star-studded SMB team, the defending champion in the season-ending tournament.

It was gathered that Cabagnot was indeed to be shifted to the Kings but there was no conduit to effect the trade between the sister teams. Direct trade between sister teams are not allowed in the league.

Cabagnot was traded to the Beermen for Mike Cortez in a one-on-one deal with Air21. San Miguel is his fourth team in five seasons in the league.

“For the meantime, focus muna siya sa San Miguel and coach Siot told him na titingnan pa niya kung magiging effective ba siya sa team together with Jonas (Villanueva) and Denok (Miranda),” said Espiritu.

According to Espiritu, Tanquincen wanted to maximize the talents of his three point guards, but if it is not possible, the trade would still push through.

Cabagnot was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2005 rookie draft but after playing two seasons, Cabagnot was dealt to Coca-Cola where he played for two seasons before he was traded to Air21 (formerly Burger King) in the latter part of the current season.

http://www.tribune.net.ph/sports/20100312spo5.html

Healthy Gin Kings source of joy for Jong

2010-03-11T16:49:00.001-08:00

MANILA, Philippines—So far, Jong Uichico is having none of the problems that besieged his Barangay Ginebra crew in the last PBA tournament.

“So far, so good,” Uichico told the Inquirer Wednesday, shortly after a practice game against Rain or Shine.

Although his boys lost by four points, Uichico was upbeat of his Gin Kings’ chances in the coming Fiesta Conference because all his stars are healthy so far.

“I just hope it stays that way,” added the multi-titled mentor, who is gunning for a second win in three years in the import-flavored, season-ending event with reinforcement Awvee Storey.

Reigning MVP Jayjay Helterbrand and Mark Caguioa, Ginebra’s heart and soul who sat out majority of the Philippine Cup because of varying leg injuries, are now 100-percent fit and Uichico made it no secret that the duo will again play a great role in the Kings’ coming stint.

Ginebra won this tournament two years ago with a 7-foot reinforcement in Chris Alexander, a gem of an import unveiled by the Kings who are hoping that they have found another diamond in the rough in Storey.

“He’s not flashy, but he is very hardworking and he is very effective,” Uichico said, even as he expressed some sort of disappointment that he wasn’t able to land Alex Cabagnot from Air21 to address his backcourt need.

The soft-spoken coach is also confident that he can give Yancy De Ocampo a second wind in his career.

“I know what they (experts) have been saying, that Yancy is slow and that Yancy is lazy and all of those things,” Uichico said. “But to me, he is a player that complements what the team already has.”

Meanwhile, only three returning imports are in the official list—Gabriel Freeman of the defending champion San Miguel Beermen, burly Jai Lewis of Rain or Shine and Coca-Cola’s James Penny.

Alaska will parade wiry NBA D-League standout Diamon Simpson, Talk ‘N Text will have Eric Hicks and Air21 will be bannered by Larry Hickerson.

Source: Musong R. Castillo, Philippine Daily Inquirer

Simpson hopes to carry Aces all the way in Fiesta Conf., Freeman, Lewis, AJ back

2010-03-11T16:39:00.000-08:00

source: PBA.ph

Their pride in tatters after another title bust in the recent Philippine Cup, the Alaska Aces hope to turn their fortunes around in the coming PBA Fiesta Conference with the help of a 22-year-old recognized for his defense.

Diamon Simpson, named to the All-America Defensive Team while playing for the St. Mary’s Gaels, has been signed up by Aces to beef up the team in the season-ending conference that starts on March 21 at the Araneta Coliseum.

The presence of Simpson along with new recruit Sam Eman and Sonny Thoss shores up Alaska’s frontline, no wonder Alaska coach Tim Cone is excited about his new starting lineup.

Simpson averaged 15.5 points and 9.6 rebounds while playing for the Los Angeles D-Fenders in the National Basketball Association Developmental League.

But his strongest suit is his defensive acumen. He averaged 1.7 steals and 1.6 blocks per game while playing the power forward spot for his collegiate squad. In 2008, he was cited as Defensive Player of the Year by CollegeInsider.com.

Leroy Hickerson, a two-time slam dunk champion in the Mexican League, was scheduled to arrive last night to carry the colors of Air21.

Hickerson is listed as 6-foot-5. He ruled the slam dunk competition in the Mexican LNBP All-Star Game in 2008 and 2009. He worked out with the Memphis Grizzlies last summer and was named Player of the Year, Guard of the Year and Import Player of the Year by Latinbasket.com.

In 41 games last year, Hickerson averaged 19.2 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.2 steals per game while playing for the Halcones UV Xalapa.

Sta. Lucia, Rain or Shine and defending champion San Miguel Beer are bringing in old faces.

The Realtors are launching their campaign in the Fiesta Conference with Anthony Johnson while burly import Jai Lewis will beef up the Elasto Painters. The Beermen are once again counting on Gabe Freeman to lead their title retention drive.

--------

UPDATE: Air 21's import Leroy Hickerson (sigh, he is full of potential and a real exciting cager) won't make it... he broke an elbow in a car accident in Mexico hours before boarding a plane for RP. His replacement, Keena Young! (via Snow Badua)

Rudy Hatfield's transformation

2010-03-10T17:11:00.001-08:00

source: Joaquin Henson | philstar.com

When Rudy Hatfield returns to action with Barangay Ginebra in the PBA Fiesta Conference, fans will see a changed man.

The word is he won’t be around when the conference opens March 21 and will check in sometime in April. He reportedly signed a one-year contract to resume his career with the Kings.

“After about a year of researching, speaking with God, receiving so many signs and just putting myself out there to believe, I was finally saved,” said Hatfield. “My old life was put to death and I was reborn. I now truly believe that Jesus Christ is our Savior.”

Hatfield, 32, took a leave of absence from Ginebra in 2007 to attend to family matters. Now that he’s put his life in order, Hatfield said basketball is back as his priority.

But Hatfield said spreading the Good News of salvation will be a continuing commitment.

“Currently, I attend Northridge Church in Plymouth, Michigan,” he said. “Together with Mega City Ministries in Metro Manila, we were able to reach out to thousands of people, spreading the love of Jesus to each of them during a brief visit to Manila last November. I intend to continue working with Mega City Ministries and senior pastor Greg Lyons. They have a wonderful ministry that opens doors to any and every person. Understandably, basketball is my job and ‘if a man will not work, he shall not eat.’ That’s from 2 Thessalonians 3:10. However, the decision to return is truthfully God-led and ministry work will be just as important, if not more, than basketball.”

Hatfield said his eyes were opened to God during his leave of absence.

“I’ve always been interested to find out what the purpose of life is,” he opened up. “I was, and sometimes still am, a skeptic. I loved to argue with Christ followers about their faith in Jesus. Eventually, I got to the point where I realized I wasn’t a very good person, yet I received so many great things. I realized I didn’t deserve anything and wondered why I was given certain things that so many others deserved.”

Hatfield said he never strayed from the path of discovering the truth.

“I stayed on the path of many questions, many arguments with people but rather than doing it just for pleasure, I was looking for the truth,” he went on. “With the help of my amazing wife, who went to a Christian school her whole life, and many others I eventually got to the point where I started believing that the Bible may be true. I now truly believe that if we believe in Christ’s death in our sins, His resurrection as ourselves being resurrected into a new life and that He is the way, truth and the life.”

* * *

Hatfield said he’s not proclaiming himself to be saintly.

“By all means, I still sin, I still make mistakes and I have a long, painful journey to go before I’m made into the perfect image of Jesus,” he said. “But at least, I know I can repent and be forgiven and I focus everyday on getting closer to God.”

Hatfield said his wife Bethany and daughters Bella, 5, and Lylah, 1, are his backbone.

“My wife is truly an angel sent from God,” he said. “My baby girl is a gift from God and Bella is an amazing little girl. I met my wife while she was dating a good friend of mine. When I saw her, I really knew she was something special. I met her on New Year’s Day of 2006 when I initially went home after my contract ended with Coca-Cola. This was just before I entered the fire academy. I never asked her out because she was dating my good friend. I remember one day, talking to him and asking him, ‘How’s Bethany?’ and he told me they were no longer together.

“About a month later, I went up to the bar where she worked at the time, sat down and had a few drinks and spent the night chatting with her. We ended up going on a date and that’s when I really fell for her. I ended up calling my friend whom she was dating before and asking him if he minded if I dated her. I was trying to be a good man by asking but honestly, if he had said no, I still would’ve gone out with her. Once my mind is set on something, it’s very rare that I’m going to be stopped. We were married on Aug. 8, 2007, in Turks and Caicos island off the coast of Jamaica. That’s the reason I couldn’t play for the national team at that time. We had scheduled that wedding a year in advance before I even came back to play for Ginebra.”

Hatfield said he had dreams of becoming a fireman and even a professional wrestler but in the end, he realized he was cut out for basketball and that was his love.

“I was never able to get a job as a fireman although it may be the fact that I never applied,” he said. “In Michigan, 90 percent of firemen also need to have their paramedic license which entails about another year or so of school plus doing emergency ride-alongs and a crazy amount of hours doing hospital internships, unpaid internships I might add. I really just wanted to put out fires and not deal with medical stuff. I don’t think I will go back into doing that once I’m finished with basketball. Maybe, I’ll continue doing ministry work both in the US and the Philippines for the rest of my life. I’m sure. I’ll just leave that up to God.”

Air21 ships Yancy to Ginebra for Alvarez, Kramer

2010-03-08T16:15:00.000-08:00

source: gmanews.tv

Air21, a team always busy on shipping one player to another, will have a reunion of Ateneo and La Salle players on its team for the coming Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Fiesta Conference.

The Express got half of the job done when they dealt recently-acquired 6’9 center Yancy de Ocampo and their second-round draft pick in next season’s Rookie Draftto the Ginebra Gin Kings in exchange for 2004-05 Rookie of the Year Rich Alvarez and bruising forward Doug Kramer.

Ginebra coach Jong Uichico, in a text message to GMANews.TV, confirmed the news.

“It’s for finalization, but I don’t know if it’s already been approved," said Uichico.

Air21 team manager and PBA chairman Lito Alvarez said it’s already agreed in principle and welcomed this new development for his team.

Alvarez said it was coach Yeng Guiao who convinced him to get Alvarez as he is more “familiar in utilizing the player’s potential."

“Coach Yeng said he wants Rich’s work ethic," said the Air21PBA board representative in a telephone interview. “Coach Yeng thinks Rich wasn’t given enough playing time with his former teams."

Alvarez played for Guiao when the fiery mentor was still coaching Barako Bull (formerly Red Bull Barakos).

Trades between the 10 participating teams are expected to intensify before the start of the import-laced Fiesta Conference on March 21.

Cabagnot-Cortez trade in the works

While Ateneans Alvarez, Gonzales and Kramer had found themselves altogether again, two former members of the La Salle Green Archers’ champion squad are anticipating the possible acquisition of their ex-teammate – Mike Cortez.

Cortez, who won championships with La Salle, will most likely join Ren-Ren Ritualo and Carlo Sharma with the Express.

A trade between Cortez and talented lefty point guard Alex Cabagnot is being worked out now by Air21 and San Miguel.

Cabagnot was traded by Coca-Cola to the Express along with Gonzales for Gary David and Chico Lanete. If plans push through, Cabagnot will be dealt to his fourth team in the last five years and might join a Beermen squad loaded with guards. – GMANews.TV

SMB, Ginebra mull trades

2010-03-07T16:04:00.000-08:00

source: Nelson Beltran | philstar.com

San Miguel Beer and Barangay Ginebra are working out possible trade deals with other ball clubs in search of a solution to problems stemming from injuries.

The Beermen hope to plug holes in their wing spots while the Kings are after players who could fill the void in their center and guard positions.

Both teams fell short in their bids to make the all-Filipino finals. Lordy Tugade and Danny Seigle are two key San Miguel players downed by injuries, while Eric Menk, Celino Cruz and Jayjay Helterbrand are among Ginebra mainstays with recurring injuries during the tourney.

A reliable source said San Miguel and Ginebra are likely to close their separate trade deals before the start of the import-laden Fiesta Conference on March 21.

SMC officials are keen on beefing up the San Miguel and Ginebra rosters, hoping for a follow-up to the strong showing of all their three ball clubs in the recent Philippine Cup.

The sister teams all made the semifinals, with the Purefoods Giants sweeping the Alaska Milk Aces in four games in the finale and the Beermen topping the Kings in their one-game playoff for third place.

All three teams have no intention of slowing it down in the second conference.

The Beermen seek back-to-back all-Filipino championships with import Gabe Freeman back in tow while the Giants go for a season sweep with Reggie Larry as reinforcement.

The Kings, runners-up behind the Beermen in the 2009 Fiesta Conference, field in Awvee Storey as their import.

Air21 is another team reportedly working out a trade.

The Express have earlier consummated a deal with the Talk n Text Tropang Texters, getting Renren Ritualo and Yancy de Ocampo for JR Quinahan, Mark Yee and Aaron Aban.

At Barako Bull, a tryout is ongoing with a number of Philippine Patriots joining the Energy Boosters in the camp.

The Fiesta Conference fires off March 21 with Barako Bull tangling with Sta. Lucia Realty and Barangay Ginebra going up against Talk n Text.

The second play date on March 24 pits Barako Bull versus Coca-Cola then San Miguel against Air21.

The start of the Fiesta Conference also marks the resumption of fan balloting for the 2010 All-Star Game set April 25 in Puerto Princesa, Palawan.

The PBA and the Puerto Princesa city government closed their agreement after PBA officials Rickie Santos and Willy Marcial visited the host city Thursday.

It will be a five-day extravaganza with the PBA stars holding several outreach programs, including beach-cleaning, road-painting and basketball clinic, leading to the All-Star Sunday.

uploaded by snowbadua

uploaded by snowbadua

Giants too good for Aces

2010-03-04T15:55:00.000-08:00

source: Tito S. Talao | mb.com.ph

Tim Cone, the Alaska Aces coach, didn’t hang around long enough Wednesday night to “tip my hat” and “sing praises” to the Purefoods Giants after getting swept in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup Finals.

He was gone from the Araneta Coliseum before Giants coach Ryan Gregorio could be hoisted by his victorious players, and was probably halfway to where he sought solace by the time Best Player of the Conference and Finals MVP James Yap was through shaking hands at the press room.

Getting shut out by a kid in front of more than 16,000 screaming fans was probably too much for the veteran Grand Slam coach to bear.

And there lies the dilemma of the Alaska Aces.

Defiant despite falling behind 0-3 in the championship series, Cone said after Game 3 Sunday that only when the series is over will he tip his hat and sing praises to Purefoods.

“But it’s not over yet,” he said.

It’s over now. And when the end finally came for the Aces, with Yap putting the finishing touches to a masterful performance and Purefoods’ relentless frontline crushing the air out of its counterpart, Cone found himself practically alone in the battle with the menacingly tall and agile Giants, especially in the title-clinching Game 4.

Willie Miller made a valiant effort to salvage Alaskan pride and stature, the Aces having come into the Final Four as a top seed and into the championship as conquerors of the Barangay Ginebra Kings in four straight games.

But two men couldn’t do it alone. And with Miller and Cone, and to some extent LA Tenorio, the only ones with the sustained courage to stand their ground against a pack of stampeding horses in Roger Yap, Marc Pingris, Rafi Reavis, KG Canaleta, Kerby Raymundo, and rookie Rico Maierhofer, the Aces inevitably got run over.

“It was really their size,” Cone told the Bulletin’s Waylon Galvez the day after.

“I think we did a good job on James, Roger Yap and Kerby Raymundo. But it was Pingris, Reavis, KG (Canaleta), and even Maierhofer… it was their size and quickness. They disrupted us both on offense and defense,” Cone said.

“They outplayed us in the series. We had our chances to win games. But they came in to the series at a high level especially defensively. They just gained momentum. But the most impressive thing is that they didn’t let off the pedal for a moment. They didn’t give us a chance.”

Gregorio, who vowed not to give Alaska an ounce of air to breath after taking a 3-0 lead, pointed to the Giants’ indomitable spirit, something the Aces radiated when they still had Johnny Abarrientos, Jojo Lastimosa, Bong Hawkins, Poch Juinio and a much younger Jeffrey Cariaso in the lineup, as a key factor in their triumph.

“Our will and determination to survive can't be described in words,” Gregorio said. “We're supposed to be tired, the inferior team. But again that's what prayers can do. Yes, we're tired on the court, we're tired in practice, but we prayed hard and those prayers were answered.”

Coming in through the backdoor, the Giants needed five games to dispose off tenacious Rain or Shine in the quarterfinals before blasting to smithereens No. 2 seed San Miguel Beer in the semifinals.

“This is really close to impossible, but we did it,” he said. “So that’s what makes this conference more memorable for us. It can be a preview of what life can be. You start slow, you start on the wrong foot, but you have to end the right way and that’s exactly what we did. We never gave up.”

Somewhere along the way, the Alaska Aces did.

Purefoods capture PBA Philippine Cup title

2010-03-03T17:30:00.000-08:00

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Purefoods Tender Juicy completed only the 3rd sweep in finals history with a masterful 86-76 win in Game 4, clinching the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup crown in front of more than 17,000 fans Wednesday night at the Araneta Coliseum.

James Yap proved why he’s the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the conference as he carried the Giants anew to their 8th title overall and 5th All-Filipino crown.

Yap scored 18 points including a back-breaking trey that sealed the victory for Purefoods.

Purefoods joined Swift (1992 Third Conference vs. Seven-Up) and Northern Consolidated Cement (1985 Reinforced Conference vs. Manila Beer) as the only teams that registered a 4-0 sweep in a best-of-7 finals series.

“Masayang-masaya ako at nakuha namin ito. Para sa Purefoods fans ito,” said Yap, who was also named the Handy Flex Finals MVP by the PBA Press Corps.

Roger Yap added 16 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists while Kerby Raymundo contributed 13.

Rookie Rico Maierhofer scored all of his 12 points in the second half, 9 in the third where he helped the Giants to get some cushion after a 40-all halftime score.

“Chapter closed, destination reached, mission accomplished. Now we can celebrate,” said Giants head coach Ryan Gregorio, who bagged his third PBA crown. He is the first Purefoods coach to win two All-Filipino titles.

“It’s not easy at all. The first 3 games could have gone either way. But we allotted extra motivation for tonight’s game,” Gregorio added.

The Giants came out firing in the game as they erected a 35-22 lead before Alaska unloaded an 18-5 bubble to tie the count at 40-all by the end of the first half.

The Aces even took a 44-40 lead early in the third before Maierhofer spearheaded a 17-4 exchange for a 57-48 lead.

Alaska kept on coming back and last threatened at 65-68, before James Yap and Roger Yap joined hands for a crucial 7-0 bomb for a 75-65 spread with 4:55 left in the game.

Willie Miller tried to ignite a late rally for Alaska as he buried a triple to slice the lead at 76-81, but James Yap answered with his own trey to seal the win, 84-76, 1:48 remaining.

Sonny Thoss had his best game in the series for Alaska with 19 points and 12 rebounds but his efforts were not enough to extend the series into another game.

Miller had 17 points but was 6-of-17 from the field. LA Tenorio contributed 11 markers.

James Yap is RP Cup’s best

Yap, a Negros Occidental native, won his first Best Player of the Conference (BPC) honor, beating Alaska’s Willie Miller and Kelly Williams of Sta. Lucia Realty.

The 28-year old Yap drew strength from the votes from media, Solar Sports and PBA Office to be the first player to win the BPC honor despite not being in the top five of the statistical points (SPs) category.

Yap, the 2005-06 MVP winner received 221 points from the statistical points, 591 from media, 128 from players’ votes, 150 from the television coveror and 150 from the PBA for a total of 1,380 points.

The two-time MVP Miller, who already won this title twice in his career, finished second with 925 points followed by Williams with 476.

“Siyempre masayang-masaya ako dahil blessing ito,” said Yap, the first Purefoods player to win the honor since Rey Evangelista, who also won the award in the 2002 Governor’s Cup.

“Nagpapasalamat ako sa teammates ko, sa management at sa coaching staff sa tulong nila para makuha ko itong award,” he added.

Yap also dedicated the honor to his mother-in-law and former President Cory Aquino, who passed away last year.

Beermen forward Arwind Santos finished fourth in the voting with 457 points followed by Devance (397) and Talk ‘N Text’s Mark Cardona (245.)

The scores:

Purefoods 86 - Yap, J. 18, Yap, R. 16, Raymundo 13, Maierhofer 12, Pingris 9, Simon 5, Reavis 5, Canaleta 3, Artadi 3, Salvador 2, Allado 0.

Alaska 76 - Thoss 19, Miller 17, Tenorio 11, Hugnatan 9, Cariaso 5, De Vance 4, Fonacier 4, Dela Cruz 4, Ferriols 2, Cablay 1, Borboran 0.

Quarters: 21-15, 40-40, 65-58, 86-76.

James Yap cops Best Player of the Conference plum

2010-03-03T17:29:00.001-08:00

source: gmanews.tv

“Miller Time" has been a familiar refrain for Alaska ace Willie Miller during the first half of the KFC-Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup. But it was Purefoods star James Yap who stepped up big time during the more important playoffs.

For this, Yap secured his first Best Player of the Conference (BPC) award, becoming the first Purefoods player to win the award since Rey Evangelista in the 2002 Governors Cup.

The 6’3 forward from Escalante, Negros Occidental, won convincingly over Willie Miller and Sta. Lucia’s do-it-all forward Kelly Williams.

Yap, the only player in Purefoods’ current roster who won a Most Valuable Player award aside from four-time MVP and current team manager Alvin Patrimonio, garnered 221 statistical points, 591 media votes, 128 players’ votes and 150 votes from television coveror for a total of 1,380 points.

“Masaya ako sa award and I would like to thank my teammates, coaching staff and management," said Yap. “Pero siyempre, mas masaya kung mag-champion kami."

Miller, a two-time MVP and a two-time winner of the BPC, came in second after accumulating 925 total points while Williams, who also won both an MVP and BPC award, placed third with 476.

Williams was No. 1 in the statistical points (SPs) average with 40.6 despite his team missing the playoffs.

Yap dedicated the honor to his late mother-in-law, former President Cory Aquino. - GMANews.TV

Purefoods defeats Alaska in Finals Game 3

2010-02-28T16:38:00.001-08:00

source: gmanews.tv

Purefoods rallied back from an early 12-point deficit to hack out another thrilling win at the expense of Alaska, 79-78, as the Giants moved to the threshold of capturing the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup title via a sweep.

KG Canaleta hit the game-tying three-pointer inside the final two minutes and Kerby Raymundo scored off a perfect spin move that put the Giants on top for good, 79-77, before watching Alaska crumble under extreme pressure with a series of turnovers and missed shots.

Pandemonium broke inside the Araneta Coliseum the moment Willie Miller missed a floater inside the foul line at the final buzzer, formalizing Purefoods’ third straight win in the series for a commanding 3-0 lead.

he Giants will go for all the marbles on Wednesday when Game 4 is played also at the Big Dome.

No team in the 35-year history of the league has climbed back from such a huge deficit to win a best-of-seven duel.

Counting back their three straight wins in the semifinals, the Giants have won their last six games, including their stirring 86-85 victory in Game 2.

“Not until we get that win no. 4 will there be a celebration within the team," said a very cautious Purefoods coach Ryan Gregorio.

James Yap again topscored for the Giants with 14 points and PJ Simon added 12. But it was Canaleta who brought the team back to life after trailing by as many as 16-4 in the opening quarter.

Canaleta shot 2-of-3 from three-point range to finish with eight points.

“He bailed us out when the chips were down," said Gregorio of the slam dunking forward out of University of the East.

Canaleta came through with the highlight reel play of Game 3, scoring on a baseline throw down off Joe DeVance’s outstretched arm seven minutes into the final quarter as the Giants threatened at 63-67.

His fadeaway shot from downtown finally had Purefoods tying the game at 77 with 1:30 to go.

That’s when Alaska began to disintegrate.

Reynel Hugnatan threw away the ball intended for Miller, paving the way for Raymundo to come up with a brilliant spin move off DeVance at the other end as the Giants took a two-point lead in the final minute.

Miller then lost control of the ball in the Aces’ inbounds play, before splitting his charities in the final 31 second for a 79-78 Purefoods lead.

After Canaleta flubbed his three-point attempt, the Aces had two more chances of turning the game around, but missed on both of them, including that failed heave of Miller at the buzzer. – GMANews.TV

The scores:

Purefoods 79 - Yap J. 14, Simon 12, Canaleta 8, Pingris 8, Reavis 8, Raymundo 8, Maierhofer 7, Yap R. 5, Allado 5, Salvador 3, Artadi 1.

Alaska 78 - Miller 20, De Vance 16, Thoss 12, Dela Cruz 10, Tenorio 8, Hugnatan 6, Ferriols 4, Borboran 2, Fonacier 0.

Quarterscores: 15-21, 36-44, 61-67, 79-78.

Alaska set for Game 2 comeback this Friday

2010-02-25T16:34:00.001-08:00

source: Waylon Galvez | mb.com.ph

Even before the Finals started, Alaska coach Tim Cone likened their best-of-seven title series with Purefoods to a boxing match.

So after being hit and floored in the opening round, Cone said they have to learn how to counter punch to keep alive their title bid.

And that will start this Friday as the Aces battle the Giants in Game 2 of the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup Finals starting at 7 p.m. at the Araneta Coliseum.

Showing the same kind of toughness and resilience on the defensive end, Purefoods held Alaska’s vaunted “triangle offense” to a conference low 77 points while exploding for 81 points to take the opener of their series Wednesday at the Big Dome.

Alaska’s former two-time Most Valuable Player (MVP) Willie Miller did score 23 points but not after missing 19-of-27 tries.

Overall, the Aces were 30 of 83 (36.1 percent) from the field.

“They did a good job of stopping our rhythm, we battled but we didn’t play well,” Cone said.

But there’s still a lot of hope for the Aces.

“I think we can play better than that. They (Purefoods) really played the kind of game that they wanted to play. They’re disciplined defensive team, so we have to be disciplined offensively as well. We can be better in terms of attacking them.”

Although Cone pointed to two non-call fouls in the fourth quarter – first on LA Tenorio and then on Miller – could have changed the reflection of Game 1, he said that they have to refocus for Game 2 in order to level the series.

“We don’t have time to feel bad about this. We don’t have time to worry too much about this. It’s a seven-game series we don’t have time to,excuse the pan, since we’re Alaska Milk, you don’t have time to cry on you milk. One game doesn’t make a whole series.”

Purefoods coach Ryan Gregorio readily agreed.

Being one of the great teams in league history, Gregorio expects the Aces to come out strong in Game 2.

“Our defense held up, that’s the only way to beat a really fluid scoring team like Alaska,” Gregorio said. “This is really great momentum win for us, but the battle is not over, we’ve only won Game 1. The only advantage is we started on the right foot.”

Despite his struggles, Gregorio said that Miller got his usual numbers, but what the Giants’ defense accomplished was they were able to contain other Alaska players like Joe Devance (10 points), Sonny Thoss (9 points,) LA Tenorio (8 points), and Tony dela Cruz (4 points).

Game Friday (Araneta Coliseum)
7 p.m. — Purefoods vs Alaska

Rudy Hatfield to the rescue

2010-02-24T15:56:00.003-08:00

source: Joaquin Henson | philstar.com

Rudy Hatfield will end almost a three-year leave from the PBA and resume playing for Barangay Ginebra in the coming Fiesta Conference starting March 21.

After losing to Alaska in a 4-0 series sweep in the recent Philippine Cup semifinals, the Kings could use a fiery rebounder like Hatfield to get back in title contention. He will be a vital piece in the puzzle that coach Joseph Uichico is consolidating for the future.

Hatfield’s agent Bill Rosmarino confirmed yesterday that the H-Bomb from the University of Michigan at Dearborn has signed a one-year contract with Ginebra and will arrive from the US late March.

“Rudy is already preparing his body for battle,” said Rosmarino. “I’m just so excited. This has been nearly three years of waiting. It will be so nice to watch, as a Hatfield fan, the new improved 110 percent version. With his new mindset, rest and heart, you can only imagine what Rudy will do on the court for Ginebra.”

Hatfield, 32, took a leave of absence from Ginebra in 2007 for personal reasons. The 6-6 power forward, whose mother is Filipina, has played six years in the PBA, averaging 13.4 points and 10.8 rebounds.

In an exclusive STAR interview, Hatfield vowed to return with a bang.

“Don’t think for one second I’m gonna walk on the floor and let anyone walk all over me,” he said. “I’m comin’ to play. I’m comin’ to wrestle. And I’m comin’ to win. There’s nothing new to expect. I don’t have any new moves. I haven’t been given some miraculous pill that has me flying out of the gym and I won’t suddenly become a pure shooter. What you will see is me diving on the floor again, running up and down like a caged animal that has just been let loose and 110 percent of tenacious intensity.””

Hatfield said he is well informed about developments in the PBA and can’t wait to play for the Kings.

“What an awesome time playing for Ginebra is going to be,” he continued. “I’ve been following the PBA since I left and I definitely know what’s going on. I remember telling Eric (Menk) about J. C. (Intal) while he was at Ateneo and saying, ‘Look at the hops on this guy.’ It looks as if he’s become more than just a leaper.”

Hatfield said he has kept in shape playing in leagues but admitted he’s not in PBA condition at the moment.

“I plan on being ready,” he went on. “The good thing is I still weigh the same as when I left so I won’t have to worry about getting rid of extra weight. You know, if anything, I’ll be in shape. Maybe not as good right away but I’ll surely be able to get up and down the floor.”

Since leaving the country, Hatfield said he has found new meaning in his life with wife Bethany and their two children Bella, 5, and Lylah, 1, embracing the Christian faith.

For about 10 days last November, Hatfield quietly came to town for missionary work with the Northridge Church of Plymouth, Michigan. He visited schools, staged puppet shows for kids, conducted basketball clinics and delivered personal testimonials. Two highlights of Hatfield’s brief visit were explaining to kids a fun way to remember the 10 commandments and providing disaster relief for typhoon Ondoy victims.

“After about a year of researching, speaking with God, receiving so many signs and just putting myself out there to believe, I was finally saved,” he said. “My old life was put to death and I was reborn. I now truly believe that Jesus Christ is our Savior, that if we believe in His death for our sins, His resurrection as ourselves being resurrected into a new life and that He is the way, truth and the life. By all means, I still sin, I still make mistakes and I have a long, painful journey to go before I’m made into the perfect image of Jesus. But at least I know I can repent and be forgiven and I focus everyday on getting closer to God.”

Hatfield said his wife and daughters will make periodic visits to Manila while he’s playing in the PBA.

“It will be a great opportunity for my daughters to see a different culture especially for Lylah (who is part Filipino),” he said. “I want my kids to see where their father spent the majority of his growing years.”

As for how long he plans to play, Hatfield said it’s up to the Lord.

“Right now, the thought is to play until God tells me it’s time to move on,” he said. “I don’t know exactly how long it will be. But what I do know is for the last three years, I’ve been trying to find a purpose for my life, wondering what God made me for. For about three years, I tried to fool myself that I wasn’t made for basketball. I do know now that God gave me a gift and maybe I’m not the most talented basketball player but he gave me something that gets the job done.”

by Joaquin Henson | philstar.com

San Miguel defeats Ginebra, Beermen grab 3rd place

2010-02-24T15:56:00.001-08:00

source: PBA.ph

Led by veterans Danny Ildefonso and Danny Seigle San Miguel Beer’s reserve made a splash Wednesday night as the Beermen held off Barangay Ginebra, 95-88, to claim the second runner-up trophy in the KFC PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.

Down by a point after three quarters, the Beermen went on an 11-2 run to start the fourth and stormed ahead to stay, 80-72, on a three-pointer by Olsen Racela. SMB outscored the Ginebra, 26-18 in the fourth quarter.

SMB’s reserves accounted for 50 of the Beermen’s total points with Seigle and Ildefonso hitting timely baskets in the second quarter as SMB seized control.

Dondon Hontiveros collected 18 points for the Beermen, who snapped a three-game losing streak from their semifnal series with the Purefoods TJ Giants. Ildefonso, who logged just 10 minutes, added 15 and Seigle had 10.

“We shot terribly but we played good defense,” said SMB coach Siot Tanquingcen.

He added: “We may fall short of our goal but being champions start from building your character when nobody is watching and when nothing is at stake.”

The Kings shot 50 percent in the opening quarter, ending the period with a 9-0 run to take a 31-24 lead.

But their offense went cold in the next period and SMB capitalized, outscoring their rivals, 23-12.

The Kings held a 36-29 lead two minutes into the second when Seigle scored six straight points to highlight a 14-0 run that gave them a seven-point lead. SMB then led 47-43 at halftime.

Barangay Ginebra, which was swept by Alaska in the semis, stayed close and kept the game exciting in the third with Ronald Tubid going 3-for-3 from the trifecta zone as the Kings closed the period with a 13-4 run for a 70-69 lead going into the fourth quarter.

Tubid, who went 5-for-16 from the 3-point range, led all scorers with 22 points. JC Intal chipped in 13 and Alvarez added 10 for the Kings, who missed their first five shots of the fourth. (DBC)

The scores:

San Miguel Beer 95 - Hontiveros 18, Ildefonso 15, Seigle 10, Pena 10, Villanueva 9, Cortez 9, Washington 8, Racela 8, Miranda 6, Holper 2, Custodio 0.

Barangay Ginebra 88 - Tubid 22, Intal 13, Alvarez 10, Caguioa 9, Mamaril 8, Villanueva 8, Helterbrand 7, Baguio 4, White 3, Wilson 2, Abarrientos 2, Salvacion 0.

Quarterscores: 24-31, 47-43, 69-70, 95-88.

Purefoods defeats Alaska in finals game 1

2010-02-24T15:53:00.001-08:00

source: gmanews.tv

Purefoods’ shock troopers delivered when needed most, carrying the Giants past the Alaska Aces, 81-77, to take the opener of their KFC-PBA Philippine Cup best-of-seven Finals on Wednesday at the Araneta Coliseum.

It was Purefoods' fourth straight win dating back from its semifinals series against the San Miguel Beermen. Alaska was coming off a week-long break after a 4-0 sweep of Barangay Ginebra in their own semis contest.

Rafi Reavies and KG Canaleta scored the Giants last seven points while Mark Pingris had a double-double of 13 points and 13 rebounds in Purefoods’ Game 1 win that was tightly-fought all the way to the final seconds.

With a 1-0 lead, Purefoods hopes to make it two-in-a-row when Game 2 is played Friday also at the Big Dome.

Reavies finished with only six points, but scored all of them in the stretch run, including back-to-back baskets that kept the Giants afloat, 78-74.

He then blocked Willie Miller’s shot at the other end, before scoring on a follow up off a Roger Yap miss as Purefoods stretched the lead to six with 35 seconds left.

Alaska threatened for the last time at 80-77 on a pressure-packed three-pointer by Miller on top of the key in the final 11 seconds, but Canaleta sealed the win with a split from the foul line.

James Yap paced Purefoods with 24 points while Kerby Raymundo added 15, although both have to sit out considerable minutes in the third period due to foul trouble.

The Aces got 23 points from Miller, but the two-time most valuable player struggled from the field on a 9-of-23 shooting.

Joe DeVance was the only other Alaska player to hit double figures with 10.

Alaska trailed by seven early in the final quarter, only to bounce back and tied the game on a by Reynel Hugnatan, 72-all, midway in the final quarter.

The opening half was a tightly-fought one as Alaska and Purefoods battled to a 36-all tie after two quarters, with Miller showing the way for the Aces with 11 points, and James Yap for the Giants with 12.

After 12 minutes of play, the Aces held a 19-14 edge and could have led even more had Tony dela Cruz’s follow up basket not came a second short after the first quarter buzzer sounded. – GMANews.TV

Scores:

Purefoods 81 - J. Yap 24, Raymundo 15, Pingris 13, Canaleta 8, Reavis 6, Allado 6, R. Yap 5, Maierhofer 2, Simon 2, Artadi 0.

Alaska 77 - Miller 23, De Vance 10, Thoss 9, Tenorio 8, Hugnatan 8, Borboran 7, Cablay 5, Dela Cruz 4, Ferriols 3, Fonacier 0, Cariaso 0.

Quarter scores: 15-19, 36-36, 61-58, 81-77.

Tired Giants, refreshed Aces begin title series

2010-02-23T16:14:00.000-08:00

source: Waylon Galvez | mb.com.ph

Despite having only two days of rest, Purefoods TJ Hotdogs head coach Ryan Gregorio believes fatigue won’t be a factor when his Giants battle the Alaska Aces at the start of the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup best-of-seven title series this Wednesday at the Araneta Coliseum.

“Entering the Finals, we’re the team with the most number of games played,” said Gregorio, whose team already played a total of 29 games – 18 in the classification phase, five in the quarterfinals and six in the Final Four.

“It might be a factor (fatigue), but in the Finals, the will to win of my players will be bigger than our weary legs,” Gregorio said.

Clashing for only the seventh time – third in an all-Filipino conference and first since the Governors’ Cup seven years ago – the Giants and the Aces meet at 7:30 p.m.

The two teams split their first six Finals matches, and both are gearing for a title win after each lost in a separate seven-game battle the last time they played in the championship. Purefoods lost to Sta. Lucia Realty in 2008 and Alaska against Talk ‘N Text last season.

They also split their head-to-head encounter this conference, with Alaska winning first, 101-87, last November 22, before Purefoods bounced back with a 94-77 victory last January 15.

Alaska earned its 24th stint in the Finals and eighth in the AFC by sweeping Barangay Ginebra, 4-0, in their semifinals series.

Purefoods, on the other hand, will be making its 21st championship appearance and 13th in the all-Filipino as it came back from a 1-2 deficit in its Final Four showdown with San Miguel Beer by winning the next three games capped by an 87-78 win in Game 6 last Sunday.

Games Wednesday (Araneta Coliseum)
5 p.m. — Ginebra vs San Miguel
7:30 p.m. — Alaska vs Purefoods

Can Storey take Ginebra to new heights?

2010-02-21T16:38:00.001-08:00

source: Arman Carandang | tribune.net.ph

With its finals bid shattered by Alaska Milk, Barangay Ginebra starts to do the next logical thing: Build-up for next conference.

And the Gin Kings are doing exactly just that.

According to Ginebra coach Jong Uichico, the team has actually tapped Awvee Storey, a rugged guard who can show court leadership, as the Gin Kings’ import for the 2009-10 PBA Fiesta Conference, which gets underway on March 20.

The 31-year-old Storey, who stands 6-foot-6, is a product of the University of Illinois who had brief stints with three teams in the NBA.

Uichico said Storey is expected to arrive from China next Sunday.

It is not clear whether Storey will be used exclusively in the point guard position, especially since Ginebra is already laden with guards.

Storey would be one of the few imports playing for the first time in the Philippines as other teams are said to be keen on bringing back imports for the season-ending tournament.

Defending champion in the reinforced conference is San Miguel Beer, which happens to be in the semifinals of the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup battling a slot for championship against sister team Purefoods.

The Beermen will be backstopped anew by last season’s best import Gabe Freeman.

Rain or Shine is also bringing back its former import in Jai Lewis, while Sta. Lucia Realty is keen on hiring Anthony Johnson.

The Gin Kings were swept by the Aces in the semifinals, 4-0, although they could salvage some measure of pride if they could win the third place against either Purefoods or San Miguel.

Storey was said to be undrafted when he turned pro in 2002, but somehow managed to play for nine games for the New Jersey Nets in 2004, after which he transferred to the Dakota Wizards in the D-League.

One factor giving promise to the Gin Kings is that Storey will be suiting up for the team still in top shape as he will be coming from a Chinese league.

The Gin Kings are seeking to make an impact in the Fiesta Conference which they won two seasons ago with Chris Alexander as their import.

Cone wants SMB-Purefoods series to go the distance

2010-02-18T15:56:00.001-08:00

source: gmanews.tv

Alaska coach Tim Cone wouldn’t say whether he prefers facing Purefoods or San Miguel in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup Finals.

Cone said that all he is wishing for is the best-of-seven semifinals series between the Giants and Beermen to go the distance.

"Honestly, I hope that it (SMB-Purefoods series) goes into a Game 7," said Cone with a smile. "It will give us a couple of days to refresh. Those teams give us tough match-ups. We’re not going into that series feeling confident."

The Aces earned a return trip to the All-Filipino finals Wednesday night with a 102-95 win over Barangay Ginebra for a 4-0 sweep of their own semis series – Cone’s first ever best-of-seven sweep.

The sweep is only the fourth in a PBA best-of-seven series after Northern Consolidated first did it against Manila Beer in the 1985 Reinforced Conference; Swift against Seven-Up in the 1992 Third Conference; and Ginebra against Red Bull in the semi-finals of the 2008 Fiesta Conference.

Cone said he himself couldn’t believe that the Aces were able to sweep a team as talented as the Kings.

"Who would have thought we could do this? From the very start we were sharp and never lost a thing along the way, which is quite unusual." said Cone. "We were fresh, we were hungry, every player I picked from the bench played well."

"We came into the Ginebra series very fortunate. Celino (Cruz) and (Eric) Menk have injuries. But they kind of got back on their heels but never recovered. It’s an incredible feat," added Cone.

The American mentor could only cross his fingers that his Aces would be able to sustain their fighting form through the finals as they try to win the crown that slipped out of their hands last year opposite the Talk ‘N Text Tropang Texters.

"I hope we can play similar basketball (in the Finals)," he said. – GMANews.TV

Game Friday (Araneta Coliseum)
7 p.m. — San Miguel vs Purefoods

Alaska sweeps Ginebra, earns trip to finals

2010-02-17T18:01:00.000-08:00

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Alaska swept its best-of-7 semifinal series against Barangay Ginebra with a 102-95 come-from-behind victory in Game 4, earning a trip to the KFC PBA Philippine Cup finals.

LA Tenorio led the Aces with 20 points to cover up another quiet game from 2-time MVP Willie Miller who scored just 7 points in the contest.

Alaska is now on its 24th PBA finals appearance overall and will try to end an All-Filipino title drought. The Aces last won an All-Pinoy crown was in 2000.

Reynel Hugnatan and Sonny Thoss added 18 and 15 points respectively for coach Tim Cone, who will be eyeing his 13th title in the league. They meet the winner between Purefoods and San Miguel.

Jayjay Helterbrand paced the Kings with 20 points while Ronald Tubid and Enrico Villanueva had 15 markers apiece for coach Jong Uichico, who controlled the first three quarters before Alaska made a run in the final canto.

The scores:

Alaska 102 - Tenorio 20, Hugnatan 18, Thoss 15, De Vance 14, Dela Cruz 9, Cablay 8, Borboran 7, Miller 7, Cariaso 4, Fonacier 0, Ferriols 0.

Ginebra 95 - Helterbrand 20, Tubid 15, Villanueva 15, Intal 10, Mmaril 9, Caguioa 9, Salvacion 5, Baguio 4, Alvarez 3, Wilson 3, Cruz 2, Abarrientos 0.

Quarterscores: 27-27, 53-59, 72-73, 102-95

Purefoods beat San Miguel in Game 4, series tied

2010-02-17T18:00:00.000-08:00

source: gmanews.tv

Purefoods raced to a big 22-point first quarter lead and then weathered a big San Miguel rally in a 97-84 win Wednesday night that evened their KFC-PBA Philippine Cup semifinals.

James Yap played his best game of the best-of-seven duel by topscoring for 24 points, 10 of which came in the fourth period that helped defuse a searing Beermen rally.

Marc Pingris added 15 markers while Roger Yap came a rebound short of registering a triple-double with 15 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds in the win that allowed the Giants to equal the series at two games apiece.

The tie-breaking Game 5 is set Friday also at the Araneta Coliseum.

“It’s been a game of adjustments. We need the other players to get involved on offense other than James and Kerby (Raymundo). We made some antidotes, and the great thing is it worked," said Purefoods coach Ryan Gregorio.

“Now it’s just a best-of-3 and we think we have a legitimate crack (at the Finals)."

The Giants led by as many as 36-14 in the opening quarter following a 17-2 run.

But the Beermen countered back in the fourth and came to within 74-71 with 10 minutes remaining.

Purefoods retaliated with a 16-4 assault led by James Yap to practically seal the victory with a 90-74 advantage, time down to its last 4:27.

The Beermen shot a poor 38.3 percent from the field (26-of-67). Their starters, too, were heavily outscored by Purefoods’, 79-44.

“We can’t play this way. We’re giving up 48 percent shooting when we know that we have been holding our opponents to below 40 throughout the conference," said SMB coach Siot Tanquingcen. “We just have to make sure we have the better commitment and better communication (in Game 5)."

Danny Ildefonso came off the bench to score 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting from the field, while Jay Washington contributed 14 points. Arwind Santos poured in 11 points and the same number of rebounds. – GMANews.TV

The Scores:

Purefoods 97 - Yap J. 24, Pingris 15, Yap R. 15, Raymundo 13, Reavis 12, Maierhofer 8, Simon 5, Artadi 4, Adducul 2, Allado 0.

San Miguel 84 - Ildefonso 17, Washington 14, Villanueva 13, Santos 11, Hontiveros 10, Custodio 6, Miranda 6, Pena 4, Pennisi 3, Holper 0, Cortez 0, Racela 0.

Quarterscores: 36-15, 53-44, 74-67, 97-84.

Aces go for the kill against semis rival Ginebra

2010-02-16T16:03:00.000-08:00

source: gmanews.tv

Up by a commanding 3-0 lead in a best-of-seven series, Alaska coach Tim Cone is still bracing for the worst. Not when you have Barangay Ginebra for a semifinals opponent.

“I’ve seen a lot of things happen in one way or another," said the long-time mentor of the Aces. “Do I feel safe with this (3-0) lead? Against any other team, yes. But against Ginebra, no."

So with a lot of urgency, the Aces go for the kill Wednesday when they try to put the final nail on the Kings’ coffin and go for a finals berth in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.

As a sound student of Asia’s first ever play-for-pay league, Cone knows sweeping a best-of-seven series is very hard to achieve.

For the record, only three teams in the 35-year history of the PBA were able to pull off a 4-0 sweep - Northern Consolidated, as a guest team, against Manila Beer in the Finals of the 1985 Reinforced Conference; Swift against Seven-Up in the 1992 Third Conference championships; and the latest by Ginebra against Red Bull in the semifinals of the 2008-09 Fiesta Conference.

“There are only a few sweeps in the history of the league and winning Game 4 is always difficult," said Cone.

Game 3 alone didn’t come easy for the Aces.

Down by 23 points nine minutes into the final quarter, Ginebra staged a big comeback that nearly toppled Alaska’s big lead. Unfortunately, the Kings blinked, missing key shots at the free throw line and bungling potential game-tying three-point attempts in the dying seconds of a 91-88 loss.

Barangay Ginebra coach Jong Uichico still sees a slight hope as far as the Kings are concerned, having seen his team rise back from the grave in its quarterfinals series with Talk `N Text and still win after being down 0-2 in the best-of-five duel.

Meanwhile, San Miguel is eyeing to shove Purefoods on the brink of defeat when it goes for a commanding 3-1 lead in their own semifinals series.

The Beermen rebounded from their 103-84 Game 2 loss with a methodical 88-76 win in Game 3, outrebounding the Giants (50-38) and forcing Purefoods to miss 45 of its 71 attempts.

“We’ve learned our lessons. Pag nagkamali ka ng isa, ok lang. Pero pag inulit mo pa ‘yun, parang may pagkatanga ka na siguro," said Tanquingcen, referring no less to the lack of effort they had in the Game 2 defeat. - GMANews.TV

Games this Wednesday (Araneta Coliseum)
5 p.m. — San Miguel vs Purefoods
7:30 p.m. — Alaska vs Ginebra

Alaska defeats Ginebra in Semifinals Game 3

2010-02-14T16:42:00.001-08:00

source: gmanews.tv

Alaska survived a big fourth-quarter comeback by Barangay Ginebra and held on to a 91-88 win to stand on the verge of earning a return trip to the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup Finals.

L.A. Tenorio scored 11 of his team-high 15 points in the opening half, Tony De La Cruz added a double-double with 15 markers and 15 rebounds, and Reynel Hugnatan had nine, including a timely split from the foul line in the final 7.7 seconds that proved to be the marginal basket in Game 3 of the best-of-seven semifinals series at the Araneta Coliseum.

With a commanding 3-0 lead, the Aces can put away the Kings for good in Game 4 on Wednesday and get another shot at the All-Filipino crown they lost in seven grueling games against Talk `N Text last year.

No team in the 35-year history of the PBA has come back from such a huge deficit to win a series.

“We know better that Ginebra doesn’t quit," said an obviously relieved Alaska coach Tim Cone. “My hats off to them. The good thing with this win is that this set us up not to let our guards down for Game 4."

The Aces almost squandered a commanding 23-point advantage in the fourth quarter as the Kings held them without a field goal in the game’s final eight minutes.

The Kings even had a chance to tie the game when Ronald Tubid was sent to the foul line following a steal off Tenorio and Alaska only ahead by 90-88.

Alas, Tubid bungled his pressure-packed free throws in the final 9.5 seconds.

Hugnatan, fielded back in between Tubid’s charities, then grabbed the defensive rebound and was fouled for two charities. He missed the first and connected on the second to give the Aces that three-point cushion.

Mark Caguioa, however, launched an attempt from three-point land that didn’t even hit the rim. Tenorio recovered the loose ball but lost it to the end-line with 0.4 seconds remaining, not enough time for the Kings to make a decent attempt for a possible-tying three-pointer.

“I’ve been around in this business for 20 years and I’ve seen a lot of things," said Cone. “The last time I was 3-0 up in a series we lost Game 4. I think I’m smart enough to communicate to the players."

Alaska enjoyed its biggest lead of the game at 88-65 on a basket by Mark Borboran with 8:06 left to play.

Alaska never converted a field goal from there, and Ginebra started making its own. In an eight-minute stretch, the Aces could only get splits from Willie Miller and Brandon Cablay and couldn’t match the electrifying energy the Kings exerted.

Caguioa made a slashing move down the middle and connected to make it 90-88.

Joe Devance contributed 13 for Alaska and Willie Miller 10. The two-time MVP Miller, though, struggled just like in Game 1 of the series, shooting merely 3-of-12 from the field.

Caguioa led Ginebra with 20 points while JC Intal finally hit the double-digit mark with 12 points, the same output submitted by Sunday Salvacion and Jay-Jay Helterbrand. Tubid finished with 10 points. - GMANews.TV

The scores:

Alaska 91 - Tenorio 15, Dela Cruz 15, De Vance 13, Miller 10, Fonacier 9, Thoss 9, Hugnatan 9, Borboran 6, Ferriols 2, Cariaso 2, Cablay 1.

Ginebra 88 - Caguioa 20, Intal 12, Salvacion 12, Helterbrand 12, Tubid 10, Villanueva 9, Baguio 7, Abarrientos 4, Mamaril 2, Alvarez 0, Wilson 0, Cruz 0.

Quarterscores: 23-14, 49-37, 76-59, 91-88.

San Miguel from start to finish, now up 2-1

2010-02-14T16:41:00.000-08:00

source: PBA.ph

Going back to their old ways, the San Miguel Beermen moved back on top in their Final Four duel with the Purefoods Tender Juicy Giants.

The Beermen restored order in their game after a floundering performance Friday, smothering the Giants, 88-76, for a 2-1 lead in their KFC PBA Philippine Cup best-of-seven semifinals series at the Araneta Coliseum Sunday.

“The main thing was the effort we put in. We went back to basics. Bumalik kami sa depensa na nagpapanalo sa amin sa elimination round. We’re more committed on defense in this game than the last time,” said San Miguel coach Siot Tanquingcen. “In Game Four, we intend to stay in business. We’ve learned our lesson (in Game Two). We must not commit the same mistake again,” Tanquingcen added. “One glaring stats for today’s game was our inability to score. That’s basically the story of the game,” said Purefoods coach Ryan Gregorio.

“We’re taking a rest tomorrow (Monday). I told the boys to return with their legs ready Tuesday and be ready for the war Wednesday,” Gregorio added. Truly, the Beermen employed an efficient defense after being torched by the Giants with their hot shooting in Game Two. Jay Washington, Dondon Hontiveros, Arwind Santos, Jonas Villanueva and Mike Cortez delivered offensively while practically the whole team worked well on the defensive end.

The Beermen limited the Giants to two triples out of 23 tries and held to 36 percent field-goal shooting overall. James Yap was 0-of-6, Paul Artadi 0-of-5, Kerby Raymundo and Roger Yap both 0-of-3 while Rico Maierhofer and PJ Simon both 0-of-1 from the three-point area.

Nino Canaleta was the only Giant to score from the trifecta land, making two of four attempts. “If we can’t shoot from the outside, San Miguel will clog the lane, forcing us to low-percentage shots,” said Gregorio. “Partly, our weariness manifested again. We didn’t have the usual lift from beyond the three-point area.”

With a good job on both ends, San Miguel established control early and led by as many as 17 in the third quarter before holding off a Purefoods rally at endgame. Villanueva and Cortez led the Beermen in closing out the game with eight points each in the final quarter.

Washington, Hontiveros, Santos, Mick Pennisi and Denok Miranda got the Beermen to a strong start, taking the first quarter at 24-12. The Giants drew within six, 34-40, at halftime before the Beermen buckled down to work again, breaking away at 74-57. (SB)

The scores:

San Miguel 88 - Hontiveros 15, Washington 15, Santos 13, Villanueva 10, Cortez 10, Pena 9, Pennisi 8, Miranda 4, Ildefonso 4, Racela 0, Seigle 0.

Purefoods 76 - Yap J. 14, Canaleta 14, Raymundo 11, Yap R. 11, Reavis 8, Maierhofer 6, Simon 4, Allado 4, Artadi 2, Pingris 2, Timberlake 0, Salvador 0.

Quarterscores: 24-12, 40-34, 67-55, 88-76

2-0 FOR ALASKA

2010-02-14T16:40:00.001-08:00

source: PBA.PH

Fri, 02/12/2010 - 23:35
Alaska Milk established control against Barangay Ginebra in their semifinals showdown as the Aces kept their domination of the Kings whose woes were compounded by injuries to Eric Menk and Celino Cruz. Despite the absence of Menk and Cruz, the Kings actually had improvement in their game but the Aces were simply better in a 90-82 victory that gave them a commanding two-game-to-nil lead in the KFC PBA Philippine Cup best-of-seven semifinal series at the Cuneta Astrodome Friday. "It's hard to believe we could play two good games against Ginebra. By and large, Ginebra just couldn't do what they wanted to do because they're tired," said Alaska coach Tim Cone. "The bottom line, however, is that we've been here and they've been here. We're two-zero against Talk n Text in the last all-Filipino finals and we lost. Ginebra was down zero-two against Talk n Text in their recent quarters and they won. That's why I'm still expecting a long series," Cone added. "At least, we fought tonight. We lost it far better than we lost the last time. We fought despite a depleted lineup, and I think we'll have a better frame of mind in the next game," said Ginebra coach Jong Uichico. Willie Miller put in a game-high 18 points while Tony dela Cruz had a double-double game with 16 rebounds and 14 points as the Aces stepped up their charge fighting with a short nine-men rotation. Sonny Thoss, Joe Devance and Larry Fonacier also tallied huge numbers as the Aces came through with a follow-up on their 104-79 rout in Game One. "The guys were unselfish and they were really looking for each other. I guess that's they key. Defensively, the guys coming off the bench did a good job on the Caguioas, the Intals and the Tubids," said Cone. "Our guards picked it up defensively. I love Willie Miller's composure. He's not rushing it and really showed patience and good leadership," Cone also said. Uichico stressed they've found themselves in a deeper hole but not yet out. "The important for me is that we're no longer out-of-sync. Lumaban kami and I'm sure we'll fight even more with Celino Cruz likely to return in Game Three," said Uichico. Cruz was out in Game Two with a sprained ankle while Menk was sidelined by a groin injury. Menk is still a doubtful starter in Game Three. The Aces shot better and dominated the boards, enabling them to lead by as many as 13. The Kings kept on fighting back but the Aces played with great composure. Coming to within six, 80-86, entering the last two minutes, the Kings hastened their downfall on crucial errors by Jayjay Helterbrand and Mark Caguioa. (SB) The scores: Alaska 90 - Miller 18, Thoss 17, Dela Cruz 14, De Vance 13, Fonacier 12, Tenorio 6, Borboran 4, Hugnatan 4, Cariaso 2. Ginebra 82 - Villanueva 17, Salvacion 14, Tubid 11, Caguioa 9, Wilson 8, White 7, Helterbrand 6, Mamaril 5, Baguio 3, Intal 2. Quarterscores: 28-19, 46-42, 68-55, 90-82

REAVIS-LED PUREFOODS BUCK KERBY LOSS TO EVEN SERIES

2010-02-14T16:39:00.000-08:00

source PBA.PH

Sat, 02/13/2010 - 01:06

Kerby Raymundo picked up two quick fouls and was ejected from the game with 4:11 left in the second quarter that almost jolted the entire Purefoods bench.

Fortunately, Rafi Reavis and KG Canaleta raised the level of their games to cushion the impact of Raymundo’s absence and helped the Giants fashion out a 103-84 romp against the San Miguel Beermen Friday that evened their KFC-PBA Philippine Cup semifinal series at the Cuneta Astrodome at one game apiece.

The Giants, who lost the series opener 99-83 last Wednesday, also got a big boost from James Yap, who threw bricks for three quarters but found his offensive rhythm at the most crucial time as Purefoods held off a strong fourth quarter charge by San Miguel and preserved its first win against the Beermen this conference.

“We came out with tremendous effort and tremendous energy. And more importantly, we defended the way we defended other teams in the elims. That’s the only way you can beat a team like San Miguel … defense,” proclaimed Purefoods coach Ryan Gregorio during the post-game interview.

“It’s nice to finally win one against San Miguel. But we need three more wins to clinch the series. So there’s really nothing special about this win.”

But it was surely a relief for Gregorio and the Giants they are not down 0-2. It also an added confidence for the team knowing they have momentum going into Sunday’s Game Three.

“Rafi was a monster tonight. He ably filled the shoe of Kerby. KG also gave us a huge lift and James showed once more why he is the leader of this team. He made the big shots at the time when everybody went cold,” Gregorio said.

Reavis collected 20 points to lead all scorers, his highest output since the 2004 Fiesta Conference quarterfinals when he had 22 in a 92-76 win by Coca-Cola over Alaska. He also had 12 rebounds, three assists, one steal and four blocks in 37 minutes on the floor.

Canaleta celebrated his 28th birthday with a splash, finishing with 17 points and four assists while James Yap scored 11 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter.

Purefoods encountered a minor distraction in the second quarter when Raymundo was called for blocking foul on Jay Washington with four minutes and 11 seconds left in the period.

The veteran center argued the call and earning him a “T”. He was eventually tossed from the game after getting another one for a physical contact with the game official.

Raymundo, who saw action for just eight minutes, walked off the game scoreless, the first time it happened in seven and a half years.

Roger Yap also made his presence felt with 15 points, Paul Artadi added 12 and Marc Pingris grabbed 12 rebounds as Purefoods outrebounded SMB, 51-44.

SMB coach Siot Tanquingcen appeared disappointed when he showed up at the press room for his post-game interview.

“We got kicked in the ass. We came out flat and they played with so much energy. To me that made all the difference tonight,” he said.

Game 3 of the best-of-seven series is scheduled 6 p.m. on Sunday at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Beermen opened the game with a 10-7 lead but Purefoods quickly responded by scoring the next seven points to take the lead and never trailed the rest of the way.

Purefoods held a 50-36 advantage at halftime. The margin became 73-52 late in the third.

Danny Seigle came off the bench to lead SMB with 16 points, including a jumper that pulled the Beermen within 70-81 with still 7:08 remaining.

Arwind Santos went 5-of-18 from the field and finished with 13 points, the same score collected by Dondon Hontiveros. (DBC)

The scores:

Purefoods 103 - Reavis 20, Canaleta 17, Yap J. 17, Yap R. 15, Artadi 12, Maierhofer 9, Pingris 7, Simon 2, Adducul 2, Allado 2, Salvador 0, Raymundo 0.

San Miguel Beer 84 - Seigle 16, Santos 13, Hontiveros 13, Washington 10, Custodio 8, Ildefonso 7, Cortez 6, Racela 5, Villanueva 4, Miranda 2, Pennisi 0, Pena 0.

Quarterscores: 28-21, 50-36, 73-59, 103-84.

Giants, Kings try to level semis series

2010-02-11T16:22:00.000-08:00

source: Wayon Galvez | mb.com.ph

James Yap, Purefood’s main offensive weapon, was held to eight free throws by San Miguel Beer last Wednesday – a fact not lost on Giants coach Ryan Gregorio.

“James probably went full throttle against Rain or Shine in Game 5; he didn’t have enough gas (in Game 1),” he said. “We really need James to step up for us and consistently score in order for us to compete and eventually win against San Miguel. If he scores eight points, then we’ll have problems.”

Gregorio, however, doesn’t want to pin the blame solely on Yap.

“Other players will have to step up. I know James knows that, he really needs to score and step up his offensive weapon. Hope we can will ourselves to victory in Game 2. We don’t want to dig a deeper hole, which might be hard for us to extricate,” he said.

The Giants, still drained from their five-game series against Rain or Shine, try to level their best-of-seven semifinal series against the Beermen at 5 p.m. this Friday in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup at the Astrodome in Pasay City.

Yap, who was 0-of-8 from the field Wednesday, is expected to come strong after being bottled up by San Miguel’s defense. The former King Warrior poured 28 points against Rain or Shine in Game 5 last Sunday.

Six Beermen scored in double figures to typify the team’s balanced offense in Game 1, which they won, 99-83.

Jayjay Washington and Dondon Hontiveros led the Beermen with 17 points apiece, Arwind Santos chipped in 16, Denok Miranda had 15, and Danny Seigle added 10.

In the other semifinal match at 7:30 p.m., Alaska Milk guns for a repeat victory over Barangay Ginebra, although Aces coach Tim Cone expects it won’t be as easy as the opener.

The Aces shot 50 percent from the field and limited the Kings to 31-of-86 shooting. They also controlled the boards, 59-40.

Cone, however, is aware of what Ginebra can do.

“It’s a seven-game series for a reason. We know it’s going to be a long series. It’s going to be a tough series,” Cone said. “They took this first game to take a kind of a deep breath and they’ll start the series on Game 2, basically.”

“What this equates to winning the series? Probably it had very little to do it except the fact that we’re up and that’s all that counts. That’s all it means. Obviously we all know that Ginebra was down 0-1, then 0-2 in the last series,” he added.

Averaging just eight points this conference, Mark Caguioa sizzled with 23 points in Game 1 but failed to get support from teammates.

Games today (Astrodome, Pasay City)
5:00 p.m. — Purefoods vs San Miguel
7:30 p.m. — Alaska vs Ginebra

San Miguel defeats Purefoods in Game 1

2010-02-10T15:43:00.003-08:00

source: PBA.ph

Just like in the other series, the well-rested team played better, pouncing on a spent-out foe in the opener of the San Miguel Beer-Purefoods showdown.

The Beermen returned with aplomb from a 24-day layoff and ripped the Giants, 99-83, for the crucial head start in their KFC PBA Philippine Cup best-of-seven semifinals duel at the Araneta Coliseum Wedneday night.

"Our long break became a big advantage for us, giving our injured players time to recover. Danny Seigle and Danny Ildefonso rejoined us in this game and they were of big help," said San Miguel coach Siot Tanquingcen.

"However, it's just one game. We must not fall in a wrong sense of security. For sure, Purefoods will play with a lot of energy in the next game," Tanquingcen added. "Their fresh legs worked well to their advantage. They executed very well and they shot well," said Purefoods coach Ryan Gregorio.

"They have a powerhouse lineup and just everybody played well. Their reserves almost matched the production of their starters and that speaks well of their roster power," Gregorio added. Now 0-3 versus San Miguel in the tourney, the articulate Purefoods mentor said they really have to dig deep for them to be able to compete with the Beermen, an outright semifinal qualifiers.

In the series opener, the Giants -- coming from a grueling quarters duel with the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters -- dragged the Beermen into a battle only in the first canto. The Beermen established control in the second period and dominated the Giants the rest of the way.

Jay Washington churned out a double-double game with 17 points and 10 rebounds with five other Beermen chipping in double-digit points as they kept their domination of the Giants whom they walloped by an average of 16.5 points in two meetings in the elims.

"San Miguel is really a tough match-up for us with their talent-laden lineup. Their last man can start for other ball clubs, and that's how formidable their lineup is," said Gregorio. "What's worse for us tonight was that most of our players were absent in the game. Only Kerby Raymundo and Marc Pingris carried the fight for us," Gregorio added. Raymundo paced the team with 18 points while Pingris had double-double numbers with 17 points and 10 rebounds.

Having a terrible off-night was James Yap who was 0-of-8 from the field. He got his eight points all from the stripe. "James knows that he has to deliver if we're to get a chance in this series," said Gregorio.

Hitting good rhythm in the second period, the Beermen took a 56-43 cushion at halftime. Purefoods rode high on the exploits of Pingris early on as the Giants fought the Beermen toe to toe in the first period of play. Pingris produced 10 points and four rebounds in the first 12 minutes of play. However, Arwind Santos and Seigle came to the fore for San Miguel in the second period, fueling their breakaway. (SB)

The scores:

San Miguel 99 - Washington 17, Hontiveros 17, Santos 16, Miranda 15, Seigle 10, Ildefonso 10, Pennisi 8, Villanueva 4, Cortez 2, Custodio 0, Racela 0, Pena 0.

Purefoods 83 - Raymundo 18, Pingris 17, Yap R. 10, Allado 9, Yap J. 8, Maierhofer 5, Reavis 5, Artadi 4, Simon 4, Canaleta 3.

Quarterscores: 25-23, 56-43, 73-62, 99-83

Alaska defeats Ginebra in Game 1

2010-02-10T15:43:00.001-08:00

source: gmanews.tv

The opener of the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup semifinals series between Alaska and Barangay Ginebra showed the obvious – the Aces looking very much fresh and the Kings appearing to be weary and tired.

Coming off a three-week break, Alaska pounded an exhausted Barangay Ginebra side, 104-79, for a 1-0 lead in their best-of-seven duel Wednesday at the Araneta Coliseum.

It’s a good start, definitely," said Alaska coach Tim Cone. “Hopefully we can build momentum on this. It’s not a thing to be excited about. We all know Ginebra was 0-2 down in the last series."

The game came three days after Ginebra completed its big comeback from 0-2 down to eliminate Talk `N Text in their walkout-marred, best-of-five quarterfinals series.

Clearly, the effort took its toll on the Kings as they shot just 36 percent from the field (31-of-86) and 8-of-15 from the foul line.

So one-sided the game was that the Kings even fell behind by as many as 29 points (74-45) on a triple by Larry Fonacier in the third quarter.

In contrast, Alaska shot 49.4 percent from the field, converting 42 of 85 attempts.

Cone, however, cautions everyone against expecting a similar outcome in the next few games of the series.

“We can’t take things easy," said Cone. “That’s the advantage you get when you make it to the semifinals outright. You don’t have to go through emotional, roller-coaster series just like they did."

Sonny Thoss and Joe DeVance came through with double-doubles for the Aces to make up for Willie Miller’s miserable scoring performance.

Thoss scored 21 points and grabbed 11 rebounds and DeVance had 20 points and a conference-high 18 rebounds.

Miller was the only starter who failed to finish in twin digits in scoring, finishing with only four points and three rebounds but had five assists.

LA Tenorio ended up with 19 points and Tony De La Cruz with 10.

Mark Caguioa led the Kings with 23 points, including 13 in the third period. At one stretch, he scored 15 of Ginebra’s last 17 points as the Kings threatened to within 78-64.

That was the closest Ginebra could come, though.

Alaska responded well with Reynel Hugnatan hitting two free throws and Tenorio firing a three-point shot as the Aces once more tore the game wide open, 83-64.

“We handled the pressure well when they applied a run," said Cone.

JC Intal was held to seven points on 2-of-12 shooting from the field after averaging 23.75 points and close to 10 rebounds per game for the Kings in the quarterfinals.

Ronald Tubid only came through with eight points while Eric Menk only finished with three points. - GMANews.TV

The scores:

Alaska 104 - Thoss 21, De Vance 20, Tenorio 19, Dela Cruz 10, Borboran 8, Hugnatan 8, Fonacier 7, Miller 4, Cariaso 4, Cablay 3, Ferriols 0.

Ginebra 79 - Caguioa 23, Salvacion 14, Tubid 8, Baguio 8, Intal 7, White 6, Wilson 4, Menk 3, Mamaril 2, Villanueva 2, Helterbrand 2, Cruz 0.

Quarterscores: 29-17, 55-35, 78-62, 104-79.

After bruising series, tougher games ahead for Kings, Giants

2010-02-09T16:48:00.002-08:00

source: Waylon Galvez | mb.com.ph

After surviving their respective quarterfinal series, the going gets tougher for both Purefoods and Barangay Ginebra.

The Gin Kings and the Giants start their Final Four showdowns this Wednesday against the top two seeds at the end of classification phase, the Alaska Aces and the San Miguel Beermen as the playoff continues in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup.

Purefoods and Barangay Ginebra will enter the semifinals carrying the momentum of their 3-2 victories in the best-of-five quarterfinals series against wildcard survivor Rain or Shine and erstwhile champion Talk ’N Text.

The Jong Uichico-mentored Ginebra came back from a 0-2 in the series with three straight wins including Game 4, which TNT forfeited with a walkout in the first period last Friday, and a convincing 113-100 triumph in the sudden-death Game 5 last Sunday.

The Kings will face the Aces and Uichico knows it’s going to be another tough series considering they are up against the No. 1 team.

“They have the offensive system, they can defend. As always, it’s going to be hard beating Alaska,” Uichico said.

Another thing that concerns Uichico is his roster, with Mark Caguioa and reigning Most Valuable Player (MVP) Jayjay Helterbrand, as well as Eric Menk “not a hundred percent” after sustaining injuries early in the conference.

That’s the reason why he had to rely most of the time on second stringers like JC Intal, who proved to be a revelation in the quarterfinals as he averaged almost 25 points per game, Ronald Tubid, Cyrus Baguio, Celino Cruz, Willie Wilson, and Rico Villanueva.

Alaska will come into the series well rested and coach Tim Cone’s Aces led by former two-time MVP Willie Miller are eager to end a 10-year title drought in an all-Filipino conference.

As for Purefoods TJ, Ryan Gregorio’s team blew a 2-0 lead when Rain or Shine leveled the series with back-to-back wins, but the Giants, led by James Yap’s 28 points, scored a 95-85 win in the no-tomorrow Game 5.

Waiting for Purefoods though is San Miguel, which won twice its head-to-head in the classification phase and has the manpower to match the Giants’ firepower.

“They beat us in the elims, so we have to find ways to beat them,” Gregorio said.

Talk ‘N Text fined over P1M for walkout vs Ginebra

2010-02-09T16:48:00.001-08:00

source: gmanews.tv

Still reeling from their failure to retain their PBA Philippine Cup title, the Talk `N Text Tropang Texters just became the recipient of the highest-ever penalty in the league’s 35-year history.

For walking out of the playing court and eventually forfeiting Game 4 of their quarterfinals series with Barangay Ginebra Kings last Friday, the Tropang Texters were fined for over P1 million by the PBA commissioner’s office Tuesday.

Commissioner Sonny Barrios penalized the telecommunication franchise P500,000 for the forfeiture, the said amount going to Barangay Ginebra as underlined in section 32 of the PBA Constitution and By-Laws.

Barrios also imposed an additional P500,000 fine, which, he said, will go directly to the Players’ Educational Trust Fund that will benefit the league players and their dependents.

Likewise, the Tropang Texters’ share in the gate receipts and TV revenues for that particular game has also been forfeited in favor of the nine other PBA teams. The amount ranges anywhere between P200,000 to P250,000.

The total fine was the highest ever levied against a team that walked out of a PBA game. Ironically, Ginebra itself got slapped with a P500,000 penalty back in 1990 after the Robert Jaworski-led Añejo Rum left the court due to what the team felt was spotty officiating and never returned in Game 6 of its First Conference Finals with Shell. The Turbo Chargers were awarded the victory and the title.

Red Bull, now Barako Bull, also shelled out P507,000 in 2006 for walking out of its Philippine Cup semifinal series with San Miguel. Unlike the Texters and the Añejo cagers, though, the Red Bull players returned to the court to resume action upon orders from their team manager, the late Tony Chua.

Barrios stressed that the PBA and its teams serve different publics, foremost of which are the paying fans, who happen to be “the lifeblood of the league and whose interest the league has sworn to protect and hold as primordial."

“There are established rules and procedures to properly ventilate a team’s disagreement with officiating so that the fans do not become innocent and unwilling victims of a team’s protest over calls," said the commissioner.

A flagrant foul penalty 2 called on Ranidel de Ocampo sparked Talk N’ Text walkout with still 60 seconds left in the opening period and Ginebra ahead, 27-20.

The forfeiture allowed the Kings to level the series at 2-2.

Barangay Ginebra eventually eliminated TNT by beating the Tropang Texters, 113-100, in the deciding Game 5 last Sunday to advance into the semifinals of the All-Filipino conference opposite top seed Alaska.

The Kings became only the third team to rally back from a 0-2 hole to win a best-of-five series. - GMANews.TV

PBA governor wants P10-million fine for walkouts

2010-02-09T16:44:00.000-08:00

source: Tito S. Talao | mb.com.ph

Robert Non, Barangay Ginebra’s alternate governor to the PBA board, wants future walkouts to be treated more severely by the Commissioner’s Office, recommending no less than a whopping P10 million fine to start the ball-and-chain rolling.

“Half a million pesos is too small at today’s rates. Iba ang scenario noon,” said Non by phone from his office Tuesday afternoon.

“Kung 20 years ago e kaya nang bayaran ng isang team yung five hundred thousand, ngayon pa kaya? Ilang inflation na ba ang nangyari?”

Non was referring to Anejo Rum under playing-coach Robert Jaworski back in 1990.

The 65ers were fined P500,000 – an astronomical amount then – after walking out in the second quarter of Game 6 of the First Conference Finals and forfeiting the championship in favor of Shell Rimula-X, 4-2.

Asked to react to reports that Anejo Rum was already a subsidiary of San Miguel Corporation in 1990, Non said: “E hindi pa naman San Miguel ang nasusunod noong mga panahon na ‘yon. Di dapat sana walang walkout.”

Non said the league governors have requested copies of the PBA rules for immediate review.

“We have to revisit and strengthen the rules, especially on walkouts. Kailangan
maging deterrent talaga yung sanctions dahil you’re depriving fans who had paid hard-earned money to watch the game,” he said.

Non stressed he isn’t putting any kind of pressure on PBA Commissioner
Sonny Barrios.

“Suggestion lang naman ‘yon. Di naman cast in stone,” he said. “It’s up to the commissioner naman whatever revisions he thinks are appropriate for these times. Baka lang kasi obsolete na yung ibang rules.”

Non also made it clear he “isn’t zeroing in” on Talk ‘N Text, which walked out of Game 4 of its KFC-PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinal series with Barangay Ginebra last Friday and was fined more than P1 million.

“This isn’t about what happened. I’m just looking ahead, kung baga,” he said. “This isn’t about them.”

Ginebra played better than our team – MVP

2010-02-08T17:28:00.000-08:00

source: Tito Talao | mb.com.ph

Like the noble captain of a doomed ship, Talk ’N Text team owner Manny V. Pangilinan waited until everyone aboard had been saved before quietly stepping off deck Sunday night.

With a small retinue of business associates, confidants and friends keeping him company, the telecommunications tycoon remained on his ringside seat for more than an hour after the lights had dimmed at the Araneta Coliseum, apparently waiting for the anguished feeling of defeat to pass over.

Eventually, the man majestically known as MVP made his way out through the Big Dome corridor, passing the Talk ’N Text locker room and looking straight ahead.

A lawyer associate inquired reverently if he could give a couple of waiting sportswriters a few minutes, and he stopped to oblige.

He was asked if he regrets walking out in Game 4.

“No, not all,” said the PLDT-Smart Communications chairman. “I thought it was the right decision under the circumstances.”

And his thoughts about Game 5?

“Ginebra played very well and they deserved to win,” Pangilinan said. “We didn’t play as well as we should have, pero ganoon talaga.”

What’s in store for the team in the next couple of weeks?

“We don’t know yet. We’ll probably evaluate the performance of everybody,” he said.

Would there be a top-to-bottom shakeup?

“Mahirap sabihin,” he said. “It’s difficult to say because it has just finished. But we’ll have to review the team’s performance.”

Asked whether Serbian coach Rajko Toroman, who handles the RP-Smart Gilas team, has anything to say about the game, Pangilinan said he hasn’t spoken with him.

Later that night, however, the TNT top brass, who apparently thought the question referred to coach Norman Black who did play-by-play analysis of Game 5 for Solar Sports TV, confirmed via text message, through Smart Sports’ Patrick Gregorio, that indeed “Coach Toroman and I chatted for a while right after the game.”

What it was about, MVP’s text didn’t say. And we didn’t ask.

No walkout as Ginebra Kings dethrone Texters

2010-02-07T16:58:00.002-08:00

source: gmanews.tv

Barangay Ginebra dethroned Talk 'N Text fair and square Sunday night, 113-100, to advance into the semifinals of the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup.

JC Intal pumped in a career-high 28 points, including 16 in the opening half, while adding 10 rebounds in the Game 5 win that clinched for the Kings the controversy-marred quarterfinals series, 3-2.

Waiting for the league’s crowd darling at the other end is top seed Alaska Aces. Game 1 of their best-of-seven semis begins on Wednesday.

Ronald Tubid finally played his best game of the series with 16 points, so did Eric Menk, while Willy Wilson had 14 and Celino Cruz and Enrico Villanueva finished with 13 and 10, respectively for the Kings, who were in control of the sudden-death game majority of the way.

The Kings also became the latest team to climb back from an 0-2 deficit to win a best-of-five duel, sweeping the last three games of the series, including a 27-20 win in Game 4, which the deposed champions forfeited after walking out of the game with one minute left in the first period owing to what they perceived were biased officiating in favor of Ginebra.

Officiating was never an issue in the decisive game as Intal and Tubid came out smoking for the Kings, who raced to an early eight-point lead before settling for a 55-49 edge at the half.

Then came the big third quarter rip-off.

Intal opened the second half by completing a three-point play, before Celino Cruz launched a booming three-pointer for a 61-49 Kings lead, at which time Talk `N Text gunner Mac Cardona was already nursing his fourth personal foul.

A jumper by Wilson at the 7:00 mark of the period stretched the lead to 15, before the Kings made it a 76-59 game midway into the third, prompting Talk `N Text coach Chot Reyes to call a timeout as chants of “Ginebra! Ginebra! Ginebra!" from majority of the 21,422 crowd in attendance reverberated inside the Araneta Coliseum.

The Tropang Texters made a concerted effort to bring down the deficit to 102-96, but the Kings made a short but telling 6-2 run to safely pull away in the final 1:40, 108-98.

Cardona topscored for the Tropang Texters with 21 points – half of them in the first half – while Jason Castro and Jimmy Alapag added 18 apiece.

Talk `N Text had no. 33 printed on their playing shirt in honor of suspended teammate Ranidel de Ocampo. The 6-foot-7 shooting forward out of St. Francis was meted a one-game suspension by the league for committing a flagrant foul 2 on Tubid in Game 4, the controversial call that eventually sparked the Tropang Texters’ decision to walk out of the game. – GMANews.TV

The scores

Ginebra 113 - Intal 28, Tubid 16, Menk 16, Wilson 14, Cruz 13, Villanueva 10, Salvacion 8, Baguio 3, Helterbrand 3, Caguioa 2.

Talk N Text 100 - Cardona 21, Castro 18, Alapag 18, Dillinger 17, Peek 9, Carey 8, Ritualo 5, De Ocampo Y. 4, Belasco 0.

Quarterscores: 30-22, 55-49, 88-79, 113-100.

GINEBRA LEVELS SERIES AS TALK ‘N TEXT WALKS OUT OF GAME 4

2010-02-07T16:58:00.001-08:00

source: pba.ph

Fri, 02/05/2010 - 20:49

TALK `N Text forfeited Game 4 of its quarterfinal showdown with Barangay Ginebra Friday night in a stunning twist expected to add drama and emotion to their do-or-die encounter for a semifinal berth in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup.

A disputed flagrant foul-penalty two called on Ranidel de Ocampo sparked off the incident, which turned out to be the last straw for coach Chot Reyes to order the Tropang Texters and his entire coaching staff to walk out of the Araneta Coliseum floor with a minute left in the opening quarter and the Kings leading, 27-20.

De Ocampo was whistled for a foul against Ronald Tubid while the Barangay Ginebra shooting guard was driving for a basket.

The entire Tropang Texters immediately proceeded to their dugout, dressed up, and never returned to the court again.

As standard operating procedure, Talk `N Text was given a five-minute grace period to go back to the playing court. When the buzzer sounded, a pair of one-minute grace periods was again given them.

But to no avail.

And so, the Kings walked off with another win to level the best-of-seven series at two games apiece, with the decisive Game 5 set on Sunday also at the Big Dome.

Winner of the Kings-Tropang Texters duel will meet the Alaska Aces in the semifinals, a best-of-seven affair.

“I’m happy, they gave the game to us. We will take any win, and we are here to win,” said Barangay Ginebra coach Jong Uichico.

“I’m not going to talk about exactly what happened. That’s their (Talk `N Text) decision and we abide by it,” Uichico added.

League Commissioner Sonny Barrios tried to talk out the Tropang Texters from finishing the game through Talk `N Text Board representative Ricky Vargas and team manager Virgil Villavicencio, but failed to convince both officials.

Later, following an extensive meeting with team officials of both Talk `N Text and Ginebra, Barrios announced that a minimum fine of P500,000 will be slapped on the Tropang Texters and more if he finds there is a need.

The Commissioner has also called Villavicencio for a meeting at his office Saturday afternoon.

“As sportsmen and gentlemen, we will have a Game 5,” Barrios announced. “I’d rather not think that there won’t be a Game 5.”

The incident marked the first time in the last 20 years that a team walked out and forfeited a PBA game.

Then known as Anejo, Barangay Ginebra and playing coach Robert Jaworski Sr were fined P500,000 for forfeiting Game 6 of the 1990 First Conference championship series against Formula Shell, which went on to win the title after the Rhum Makers refused to go back to the playing court.

Red Bull also did the same during the 2006 Philippine Cup semifinals opposite San Miguel, although the Barakos returned to the playing court upon the order of the late team manager Tony Chua and finished Game 4 of the series, which the Beermen won, 106-82. (GR)

Pressure mounts on TNT, Giants

2010-02-04T16:21:00.001-08:00

source: Waylon Galvez | philstar.com

For Talk 'N Text and Purefoods, Friday night’s objectives are the same. They are determined to win and avoid a fifth and deciding game in which the momentum is likely to switch to their respective opponents in the quarterfinals, Ginebra, and Rain or Shine.

The Texters and the Giants took 2-0 leads in the best-of-five series but lost the third game last Monday allowing the Gin Kings and the Elasto Painters to live another day.

Not only that, the Kings and Painters now enjoy a slight momentum in tonight’s fourth game as they try to force the rubber match.

The fourth game is set at the Araneta Coliseum with Ginebra facing TNT at 5 p.m. and Purefoods playing Rain or Shine at 7:30 p.m.

“Masyadong nanggigigil,” said TNT team manager Virgil Villavicencio Thursday in assessing the Wednesday setback. (We badly wanted to win.)

Besides that, however, Villavicencio, who is just in his second week as team manager replacing Frankie Lim, said the team was surprised by the energetic performance of Jayjay Helterband and Mark Caguioa.

“We didn’t expect them to play that well,” he said as the two Ginebra stars contributed nine points each but provided an intimidating presence on the court in the Kings’ 102-97 win over TNT.

Villavicencio said they expect to end the series today.

“Having to play a fifth game against a team like Ginebra is dangerous,” he said, noting that the Kings enjoy tremendous crowd support which can tilt the balance in a close game.

Rain or Shine also survived its must-win match but, like Ginebra, also faced a similar situation tonight.

Purefoods, however, is likewise determined to end the series.

“Must win situation for us,” said Ryan Gregorio whose team still leads the best-of-five series, 2-1, after winning Games 1 (90-85) and 2 (95-94).

“We are not looking beyond Friday. The sense of urgency must be present from the tip till the end,” he added.

Rain or Shine’s victory last Wednesday proved enabled the Painters to redeem themselves after blowing away a 20-point lead in Game 2.

One thing going for Rain or Shine is that veteran forward Kerby Raymundo and rookie wingman Rico Maierhofer may not play again due to injuries. The 6-foot-6 Raymundo has a thigh injury and the 6-foot-6 Maierhofer is still recuperating from a sprained right ankle.

Although the Giants controlled the boards in Game 3, 55-43, the extended minutes of Gregorio’s starters like James Yap (43 minutes) and Niño Canaleta (40 minutes) proved to be the key factor in the endgame.

“They didn’t have fresh legs to close-out the game,” he said.

Purefoods shot 7-of-27 (25.9%) from the field in the fourth to Rain or Shine’s 11-of-20 (55%). Overall, the Painters shot better, 33-of-72 (45.8%) including 13-of-29 from the three-point territory (44.8%) with Jeff Chan going 5-of-11, while the Giants were 35-of-83 (42.2%). Yap was 0-of-8 from beyond the arc.

Games Friday (Araneta Coliseum)
5 p.m. — Talk ’N Text vs Ginebra
7:30 p.m. — Rain or Shine vs Purefood

Ginebra live to fight another day, avoid Texters sweep

2010-02-03T17:15:00.001-08:00

source: PBA.ph

Barangay Ginebra squandered a 13-point halftime lead but outfought Talk n Text in a battle down the stretch, foiling the Tropang Texters’ sweep bid with a 102-97 victory Wednesday night in their KFC PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinals showdown at the Araneta Coliseum.

“It’s really hard to play Talk n Text. You have to find a way on both ends to beat them,” said coach Jong Uichico as they squeezed through to narrow their deficit to 1-2 in the best-of-five quarters series.

The Texters take their second crack at the semis clincher while the Kings go for the equalizer in Game Four in the same venue Friday. “We now have a semblance of a shot. Hopefully, we can get through again on Friday to force a sudden death,” said Uichico.

JC Intal, Eric Menk and Ronald Tubid played key roles as the Kings frustrated the Texters in their first attempt at closing out the series. Intal came through with a career-high 25 points on top of 10 rebounds, three assists and one steal while Eric Menk added 20 points, seven rebounds and three assists. Tubid, a contender for the Best Player of the Conference, struggled in the first three quarters but delivered when needed the most in the crunch. Jayjay Helterbrand chipped in eight points, three rebounds and the same number of assists.

Willy Wilson, Mark Caguioa and Cyrus Baguio also put in significant contributions but the Kings still had a hard time shaking off the gutsy Texters. The Kings eventually escaped with the win only on three missed three-pointers by Jimmy Alapag and Renren Ritualo in the closing seconds. Ginebra led by 13 at the half but TnT returned from the break smoking, racing ahead at 63-60. The two teams figured in a fierce battle to the finish.

The Kings could have sealed the win earlier if not for their poor free-throw shooting. Ginebra missed nine charities in the payoff period. Ginebra gave Talk n Text one final chance at forcing overtime after Intal muffed two foul shots with the Kings holding a three-point lead at 100-97 with 16.3 seconds to go.

Alas, Alapag misfired a trey. With eight points on perfect shooting, Celino Cruz led Ginebra’s strong second-quarter surge that gave them a 13-point spread, 56-43, at the turn.

JC Intal and Eric Menk carried the cudgels for the Kings early on as they took a 26-23 lead in the opening quarter. The Kings pulled away right in the opening half with a 51.4-percent shooting as against the Texters’ 35.4-percent clip. (SB)

The scores:

Ginebra 102 - Intal 25, Menk 20, Cruz 11, Wilson 9, Caguioa 9, Helterbrand 9, Baguio 8, Villanueva 5, Tubid 4, Salvacion 2, White 0.

Talk N' Text 97 - Cardona 18, De Ocampo R. 17, Alapag 16, Peek 12, Dillinger 10, Castro 10, Carey 10, De Ocampo Y. 2, Belasco 2, Escobal 0, De Guzman 0, Ritualo 0.

Rain or Shine defeats Purefoods in QF Game 3

2010-02-03T17:14:00.000-08:00

source: pba.ph

Jeff Chan made four three-pointers in the fourth quarter as Rain or Shine rallied to beat Purefoods, 95-92, in Game 3 of their KFC PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinal series at the Araneta Coliseum.

One loss away from being swept in their best-of-5 showdown, the Elasto Painters summoned all their energy and never gave up even when the shorthanded Giants had seized control after three quarters.

Chan, a non-factor in Games 1 and 2, finally found his rhythm in the fourth quarter, going 4-of-5 from the trifecta zone as the Elasto Painters turned the game around.

The Elasto Painters fell behind by as many as 11 points late in the third quarter but they never gave up until Chan came up with two jolting threes that put the ROS ahead to stay, 76-72, with 10:18 to play.

“I was shooting badly in the first half but coach told me to keep shooting. I really felt good in the second half,” said Chan, who finished with a team-high 17 points that went with his six assists.

Purefoods still leads the series 2-1 but Rain or Shine head coach Caloy Garcia believes the win will give his troops added confidence when they attempt to tie the series on Friday.

Game 4 of the best-of-5 series is scheduled at 7:30 p.m. at the Araneta Coliseum.

“Before the game I told my players all we have to do is compete and not look at the standing. I thought we played good basketball the past six games so I’m confident we can still pull this off. We just have to take it one game at a time,” Garcia said.

Garcia also acknowledged that his team needs to mature, citing the closing minutes when the Elasto Painters made poor shot selections and bad decisions that almost cost them the game again.

Purefoods played without injured big men Kerby Raymundo and Rico Mierhoffer and continued to miss PJ Simon but Garcia said he felt they would have still won Game 3 even if the two frontliners had played.

Gabe Norwood added four assists, two steals and 16 points including a two-handed follow-up slam of a Chan missed lay-up with 4.6 seconds remaining to seal the win. Mike Hrabak scored 15 points and Sol Mercado added 11 but was erratic all game with a team-high six turnovers.

It was disappointing loss for the Giants, who raced to a 12-point lead early in the first period, built another 11 point margin in the third before ending the quarter up 72-68.

But they made just 25 percent of their shots (7 of 27) in the fourth with James Yap going 0 of 4 from 3-point range.

James Yap eventually finished with 17 points on a 6 of 20 shooting while going 0 of 8 from three.

Nino Canaleta led all scorers with 18 points while Roger Yap, a key figure when P{urefoods dominated Games 1 and 2, also had 17 but managed just four points in the fourth quarter. (DBC)

The scores:

Rain or Shine 95 - Chan 17, Norwod 16, Hrabak 15, Mercado 11, Tang 10, Arana 8, Laure 7, Telan 5, Cruz 4, Reyes 2, Ibanes 0.

Purefoods 92 - Canaleta 18, Yap J. 17, Yap R. 17, Artadi 14, Reavis 13, Pingris 9, Fernandez 2, Adducul 1, Allado 1, Timberlake 0, Salvador 0.

Quarterscores: 29-25, 50-49, 68-72, 95-92.

Purefoods defeats Rain or Shine, 95-94, grab 2-0 series lead

2010-01-31T16:42:00.001-08:00

source: PBA.ph

James Yap and Roger Yap were once again Purefoods’ men of the hour as the Giants made it two in a row over the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters with a stirring 95-94 come-from-behind victory at the Araneta Coliseum Sunday.

Moments after Talk n Text fashioned out a 106-105 stunner of a win over Ginebra Kings, the Giants essayed their own thriller, pulling through on two foul shots by James Yap with six-tenths of a second left.

Roger Yap also played a big role as he rallied the Giants from 20-point deficits on a 20-point explosion in the second half.

With James’ two charities, the Giants completed their swashbuckling comeback to move in the threshold of the KFC PBA Philippine Cup semifinal round.

Squeezing through with a follow-up on their 90-85 win in Game One, the Giants moved a win short of setting up a best-of-seven semifinal confrontation with the San Miguel Beermen.

Purefoods takes its first of three cracks at the semis in Game Three Wednesday in the same venue.

“The hardest thing about this series is that just everybody thought it’s gonna be a breeze for us. But Rain or Shine has proven they’re a tough team. We struggled through the first three quarters. It’s a relief we’re able to pull through,” said Purefoods coach Ryan Gregorio.

“The only advantage I see at this point is that we need to win only once and they need thrice. But until we get that one, it’s far from over,” Gregorio added.

Game Two had appeared to be a won ballgame for Rain or Shine but Eddie Laure committed a costly foul with James Yap on the act of shooting from beyond the arc in the dying second.

Yap coolly sank the first two foul shots and deliberately missed the third, sending the Giants and their supporters to a frenzied celebration.

The other Yap, earlier, carried the team on his back, tossing in 20 of his 22 points in the second half.

The hard-nosed Cebuano guard highlighted his explosion with 10 straight points in the crunch, giving Purefoods a one-point spread at 93-92 with time down to 27.6 seconds.

The Elasto Painters held the lead for the last time at 94-93 as Jeff Chan converted an off-balanced shot against Rafi Reavis.

Roger Yap also stood at the forefront of Purefoods’ attack as they erased deficits of 20 points early in the third period, surging ahead at 81-79 with 7:30 left in the contest.

Chan, Mike Hrabak and Sol Mercado combined for a remarkable 8-of-11 three-point shooting as the Elasto Painters enjoyed an 11-point spread, 52-41, at halftime.

Chan knocked in four treys, including one from way, way out at the buzzer.

The Elasto Painters could have gotten much bigger lead if not for the productions of James Yap and Kerby Raymundo for the Giants.

Yap and Raymundo scored 27 points together in the first half, keeping the Giants within striking distance going to the dugout at the half. (SB)

The scores:

Purefoods 95 -- Yap J. 23, Yap R. 22, Maierhofer 14, Raymundo 11, Artadi 10, Canaleta 9, Reavis 6, Timberlake 0, Pingris 0, Alaldo 0.

Rain or Shine 94 -- Mercado 26, Norwood 22, Chan 19, Hrabak 12, Reyes 7, Arana 5, Laure 3, Arellano 0, Ibanes 0, Telan 0.

Quarterscores: 17-26; 41-52; 71-76; 95-94

Ranidel-Dillinger alley-oop play makes it 2-0 for Talk N' Text over Ginebra

2010-01-31T16:37:00.000-08:00

source: PBA.ph

Jared Dillinger completed a perfectly executed alley-oop pass with 2.4 seconds remaining and Talk ‘N Text stole a 106-105 victory from Barangay Ginebra for 2-0 lead in their KFC-PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinals series Sunday night at the Araneta Coliseum.

The final play was a fitting end to game in which the Tropang Texters displayed exemplary courage and heart. They rallied from 18-points down in the third quarter and never lost hope even when time didn’t seem to be on their side.

After JC Intal split his free throws to give Ginebra a 105-104 lead with 3.3 remaining, TNT called two timeouts to talk things over.

When play resumed, Ranidel de Ocampo (16 points) threw the inbound pass to the unguarded Dillinger (14 points), who went for that alley-oop bank shot that gave the Tropang Texters a 106-105 lead with 2.4 seconds left.

“I wanted to dunk it. But I wanted it to be safe,” said Dillinger of the winning basket he claimed was the biggest shot of his career.

With no more timeouts left, Barangay Ginebra wasn’t even able to force a legitimate last shot at the other end as time expired.

“That’s the way basketball is. San Miguel (vs. Alaska ) and Alaska (vs. Talk 'N Text) did exactly the same kind play in the eliminations. We copied the same kind of movement when we needed it. As it is, you learn from others. The important thing is the ability to execute,” TNT coach Chot Reyes said afterwards.

Reyes said the first option was for Renren Ritualo to go through multiple screens.

“The other option was for Jimmy (Alapag). We know they would deny him so we made him to be a screener instead of receiver. But Ranidel did play it perfectly. He made a hell of a pass,” Reyes said.

“I’m truly proud of my players. We kept our heads and we stayed calm.”

[uploaded by r0njame5]

More importantly, the defending champions are just a win away from advancing to semifinals against Alaska. They will try to wrap up the series Wednesday when they face the Kings in Game 3 of the best-of-five series.

Jason Castro turned in 19 points to lead six other Tropang Texters in double figures and kept the TNT in the game when the Kings threatened to pull away in the third quarter.

It was a jolting blow for the Kings, who appeared headed to levelling the series at one game apiece when they built a 61-43 lead on Willy Wilson’s basket to start the third period.

But they lost their poise when the Tropang Texters slowly clawed their way back. The Kings attempted from the 3-point range even when there was no need to and missed one too many. Genera went 10 of 31 from the trifecta zone.

But worst, Ginebra missed crucial free throws when the game was separated by just one or two points. The Kings went 29 of 45 from the free throw line and 5 of 16 in the fourth quarter.

“Game Two is lot tougher. I expect the next game to be 10 times tougher. So it’s very important that we come into the game with a sense or urgency,” Reyes said.

JC Intal finished with 23 points and his back-to-back three in the final minute of the fourth gave Ginebra a 104-102 lead. Ronald Tubid, who managed just two points in the series’ opener, came away with 20 points but went silent in the fourth quarter. (DBC)

The scores:

Talk ‘N Text 106 -- Castro 19, Carey 17, De Ocampo R. 16, Dillinger 14, Alapag 13, Cardona 11, Peek 10, Belasco 4, De Guzman 1, Ritualo 1, De Ocampo 0.

Barangay Ginebra 105 -- Intal 23, Tubid 21, Wilson 15, White 9, Baguio 9, Villanueva 9, Caguio 9, Menk 9, Cruz 2, Alvarez 0, Slvacion 0.

Quarterscores: 24-27; 43-59; 78-82; 106-105

GINEBRA – TALK N TEXT, PUREFOODS – RAIN OR SHINE QUARTERFINAL DUELS START AT BIG DOME

2010-01-28T16:37:00.000-08:00

SOURCE: PBA.PH

Thu, 01/28/2010 - 19:54

BARANGAY Ginebra coach Jong Uichico will not be lulled by what his rival says. Not when he has enough reason to keep his team on its toes.

So expect the Kings to display the same fire and energy they have splendidly displayed in the windup of the eliminations when they tackle the Talk N Text Tropang Texters Friday at the start of the 2009-10 KFC PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinals at the Araneta Coliseum.

Rain or Shine tries to carry over its surprising wildcard momentum when it tangles with well-rested Purefoods in the curtain raiser, but it will be on the nightcap – also a best-of-five affair – that much of the focus is heaped.

“Overall, Ginebra is playing the best of all the teams and presents us with a lot of problems,” said TNT coach Chot Reyes of the team that finished the elims with a four-game streak, including a 105-82 manhandling of the Texters the last time they met.

“Game 1 will be critical to let us know if we can compete with them or not following the blowout we suffered in our last game,” added Reyes.

Uichico is quick to shrug off those statements. For good reason.

Contary to expectations, Ginebra's dreaded backcourt duo of Jayjay Helterbrand and Mark Caguioa have not fully recovered from their respective knee injuries.

“Jayjay hindi pa makakalaro, Mark’s situational,” Uichico bared Thursday in a text message.

That should leave the likes of JC Intal, Cyrus Baguio, Ronald Tubid and Willy Wilson continuing to lead in holding the fort for the Kings.

All of the TNT players are fit and ready and this gnaws at Uichico the most. “We are playing the defending champions with an intact lineup,” he pointed out.

It's not manpower Reyes is most concerned about. “Really our biggest problem is our inconsistency,” he said. “If we hurdle this then we will have a chance.”

After easily making it to the quarters outright, Purefoods is also well-rested. But it is up against a Rain or Shine crew that has proven most people wrong by getting this far and now eager to go at least one more step higher.

“I always felt that their 4-14 (win-loss) mark at the end of the elims is not an indicator of their real roster power,” noted Giants coach Ryan Gregorio of the Elasto Painters, who started the tournament with six straight losses and after landing ninth barely squeaked through to the wildcard round.

Then came the RoS turnaround as it notched back-to-back knockout wins over higher seeds Sta. Lucia Realty and Coca-Cola, the last via a 99-84 count only last Wednesday.

Coach Caloy Garcia admitted those must-win games may take their toll on his team's energy level, but not on their intensity and enthusiasm.

“In Game One, for sure, medyo pagod ang mga players,” Garcia admitted after the Coke game. “But tomorrow kasal ni Jeff Chan so I'll give the players time to rest tomorrow, enjoy the moment first and then back to work.”

After what they had to go through, being in the quarterfinals is enough prod in itself for his team, Garcia added.

“At the start of the season hindi masyadong maganda ang laro, pero I told the players we have to have confidence,” Garcia related of his team that started the tournament with six straight losses and wound up the 18-game eliminations at ninth.

Sol Mercado most typified the Painters' drastic change.

After averaging just 14.1 points in the elims, the well-built guard caught fire in the wildcard, scoring 18 points and seven rebounds against the Realtors and torching Coke for 28 points to go with eight assists.

“I think they (Giants) are playing the best basketball in the PBA right now, but we're playing with a lot of heart so we'll be alright,” said Mercado. “I think we’re peaking at the right time. If we hit a good rhythm, we would be all right.”

Gabe Norwood, Mike Hrabak, Eddie Laure and Chan have also provided solid numbers of late, helping meld the Painters.

The fact was also not lost on Gregorio.

“Defense will be given emphasis in our game,” Gregorio added. “We've choked our opponents and limited them to less than 84 points in 18 games. I hope our fresh legs would be an advantage against a tired Rain or Shine team.” (NC)

Painters out to slay Giants; Texters battle Kings

2010-01-28T16:29:00.001-08:00

source: Nelson Beltran | philstar.com

Reigning champion Talk n Text and worthy title contenders Purefoods Tender Juicy and Barangay Ginebra plunge back into action at the start today of the KFC PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinals at the Araneta Coliseum.

Rain or Shine, grabbing the last seat in the quarters via the wildcard plays, completes the cast figuring in two separate best-of-five series to determine the two teams joining Alaska Milk and San Miguel Beer in the Final Four.

The Giants battle the Elasto Painters at 5:30 p.m. then the Tropang Texters clash with the Kings at 7 p.m. in the opener.

Purefoods, being the playoffs third seed, is the odds-on choice versus the Rain or Shine team which barely made the quarters on upset wins over Sta. Lucia Realty and Coca-Cola in the wildcards.

Coach Ryan Gregorio, however, said they’re not about to take the Elasto Painters lightly specially with their remarkable turnaround from their scrambling 4-14 win-loss showing in the elimination phase.

“I felt their 4-14 mark at the end of the elims is not an indicator of their real roster power. True enough, they played to their true potential and survived two knockout games,” said Gregorio.

The youthful Purefoods mentor hinted they would give special attention to Sol Mercado and Gabe Norwood defensively.

“The duo is towing their team to victory. Mercado was superb in their last three games and he must not be allowed to score at will. Norwood has been the stabilizer, he must not be comfortable in running their offense,” Gregorio said.

Purefoods walloped Rain or Shine by a whopping average margin of 23 points in the elims, but Gregorio stressed they’re playing the ElastoPainters in an entirely new battle.

The Painters themselves are upbeat on their chance.

“I think we’re peaking at the right time. If we get a good rhythm, we’ll be all right,” said Mercado.

The Texters and the Kings brace for war in their own showdown.

It’s a battle between a team aiming to be the first team in over two decades to defend an all-Filipino title and a team out to improve from a runner-up finish in the most recent Fiesta Conference.

Ginebra is one seed higher at No. 4 but coach Jong Uichico feels they’re the underdogs as they’re playing the defending champions with a healthy lineup.

Texters coach Reyes still wary with injury-depleted Kings

2010-01-27T22:24:00.001-08:00

source: gmanews.tv

Barangay Ginebra still has issues on players’ injuries to address entering its KFC-PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinals series with defending champion Talk ‘N Text.

But not even that couldn’t take away Tropang Texters’ coach Chot Reyes’ worried look especially since they’ll be up against the league’s crowd darlings.

Even in the absence of top gun Mark Caguioa and defensive whiz Junthy Valenzuela, Reyes considers the Kings a very formidable opponent that is standing in his team’s way to repeat as All-Filipino champions.

"Mas malakas sila ngayon. Ang players nila sobra (They are much stronger now. They have a lot of players)," said Reyes as the Tropang Texters prepare for Game 1 of their best-of-five series that begins Friday.

"They have Cyrus Baguio, Ronald Tubid and JC Intal, who we think we have to contain. Imagine if they have Caguioa and Junthy playing, then thoseplayers will be lost in the rotation ."

"To be honest, we are the underdogs in the series," added Reyes.

Both Caguioa and Valenzuela remain doubtful for the Kings as both still have to recover from their respective injuries.

Even reigning league most valuable player (MVP) JayJay Helterbrand is also uncertain of suiting up for the Kings.

"So how can we say that they (Texters) are the underdogs?" coach Jong Uichico asked, obviously refuting Reyes’ statement that the Kings are the favored team with three of Ginebra’s star players on the injured list.

"Sana kung mas malakas kami, kami ang nag-champion (If we had been the stronger team, we would have been the champions) last season because we have the same intact line-up."

Uichico tried to reverse the situation, stressing, “All I can say is that we are playing the defending champions with a healthy, intact line-up, not to mention the addition of Nic Belasco."

Talk ‘N Text and Ginebra split their elimination head-to-head duel in the eliminations.

And while the Tropang Texters barely made it to the quarterfinals, the Kings will be going into the playoffs fresh from a four-game winning streak.

"Definitely, they’re the hottest team right now," said Reyes. – GMANews.TV

Coca-Cola arranges KO match vs. RoS

2010-01-24T16:20:00.001-08:00

source: PBA.ph

ANTIPOLO -- Coca-Cola, sustaining the momentum of a three-game closing romp in the elimination round, whipped Burger King, 118-112, to advance to the final knockout stage of the KFC PBA Philippine Cup wildcard round at the Ynares Sports Center here Sunday night.

Mark Macapagal and Norman Gonzales led the Coca-Cola assault in the first half then Gary David and Dennis Espino took over in the second as the Tigers dominated the Whoppers, gaining the right to face the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters in the closing phase of the wildcard.

The Elasto Painters beat out the Sta. Lucia Realtors, 90-86, in a fierce showdown earlier in the day. The Tigers and the Elasto Painters battle in another do-or-die encounter in the same venue Wednesday with the winner advancing to the quarterfinals versus the Purefoods Tender Juicy Giants. "Surely, we don't want wasted the streak we've got now.

We'll do our best to make it five in a row Wednesday for us to get into the quarters," said Coca-Cola coach Bo Perasol. "We know though that it won't be easy. We have a gritty opponent in Rain or Shine. They've just shown they can compete in a big game," Perasol also said. Both Coca-Cola and Rain or Shine fought with great resolve as they eased out Burger King and Sta. Lucia.

The Realtors, who narrowly missed an outright quarters seat, settled for eighth place with the Whoppers next at ninth. Asi Taulava, averaging 17 points in the tournament, made only eight this time but he provided the Tigers a huge defensive and inside presence which proved to tough to overcome for the Whoppers.

Macapagal, David, Espino and Gonzales supplied the points as the Tigers battered the Whoppers in the middle quarters before slowing down in the final canto. David had a solid performance in his first game versus his former team, drilling in 21 points. Macapagal had 22, Espino 16 and Gonzales 14.

"Hindi ako nakatulog noong nalaman kong Burger King ang kalaban namin -- excited na hindi malaman. Na-survived namin sila at ngayon excited akong makalaban si Gabe Norwood and Sol Mercado," said David. The former Lyceum star made four straight charities at the finish helping Coke hold off BK's endgame chase. Ronjay Buenafe put in a personal conference-high of 27 points and starred in BK's fourth-quarter chase that saw them cut a 21-point deficit to four twice in the last two minutes.

The Tigers eventually finished off the Whoppers as RJ Rizada pulled off a big offensive rebound then scored on a putback making it 118-112 with 30 seconds left to play. Rookie Ronnie Matias came through with a career-best 23 points, carrying the cudgels for BK early on before fouling out with nine minutes left to play. (SB)

The scores:

Coca-Cola 118 - Macapagal 22, David 21, Espino 16, Gonzales 14, Ross 10, Cruz 8, Calimag 8, Taulava 8, Rizada 6, Rodriguez 5.

Burger King 112 - Buenafe 27, Matias 23, Yee R. 19, Belga 10, Cabagnot 10, Gonzales W. 9, Quinahan 5, Sharma 4, Yee M. 3, Williams 2, Billones 0.

Quarterscores: 38-29, 67-54, 91-75, 118-112

Elasto Painters oust Realtors from PBA quarterfinals

2010-01-24T16:19:00.001-08:00

source: gmanews.tv

Rain or Shine leaned on a finger-roll by Eddie Laure in the final 11 seconds to beat Sta. Lucia, 90-86, and slam the door on the Realtors in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City Sunday.

Laure defied the presence of 6-foot-9 Marlou Aquino in getting the shot in, clinching for the Elasto Painters the victory that arranged for them another knockout game on Wednesday either with Burger King or Coca-Cola for the right to face Purefoods in the quarterfinals.

“We can’t celebrate yet," said Rain or Shine ace guard Sol Mercado, who came away with 18 points and seven rebounds merely two days after setting a career-high 35 against Alaska Friday. “We’re not satisfied with this."

The Realtors tried to trim the gap to within a single basket, but rookie Josh Urbiztondo, previously making big shots one after the other, missed his three-point attempt this time.

“Sta. Lucia is a tough team and we were just lucky," said RoS coach Caloy Garcia. “We worked hard in practice and made the adjustments in our zone defense. And practically everybody stepped up."

Gabe Norwood added 15 points, Jeff Chan contributed 14 and Ryan Araña had 13 for the Elasto Painters, who prefer to face Burger King next if they have a choice.

“Based on the line-up, mas maganda Burger King ang kalaban height-wise and strength-wise," said Garcia.

Kelly Williams had another remarkable performance for the Realtors, scattering 27 points and 18 rebounds in a game that likewise sealed his fate of winning the Best Player of the Conference award.

Urbiztondo added 20 points – 18 coming at the three-point region – Marlou Aguino had 15, and Joseph Yeo shot 12 for the Realtors, who didn’t get much from Ryan Reyes and Nelbert Omolon, who could only produce four points apiece.

The Elasto Painters fought the Realtors basket for basket, before Jeff Chan hit a triple to tie the count for the final time at 77 with 4:42 left to play.

Laure then connected on a short jumper from the left corner and Chan once more hit a triple as Rain or Shine moved up for good, 82-77, with 3:19 remaining.

But the Elasto Painters had to weather one last stand by the Realtors after that five-point lead.

After Sta. Lucia and Rain or Shine bungled possessions, the Realtors called for a time-out with 35 seconds left. Urbiztondo inbounded the ball, darted a pass to Ryan Reyes, but got the ball back. He then quickly launched a three-point shot that swooshed in, wasting merely four seconds from the clock.

But Rain or Shine retaliated with its own splendid play. Mercado, nearly trapped at the top of the keyhole by Williams, dished off a pass to Laure, who took it strong to the hoop despite the outstretched arms of Aquino.

The scores

Rain or Shine 90 - Mercado 18, Norwood 15, Chan 14, Arana 13, Telan 9, Reyes 8, Laure 8, Hrabak 3, Cruz 2, Dulay 0, Ibanes 0.

Sta. Lucia Realty 86 - Williams 27, Urbiztondo 20, Aquino 16, Yeo 12, Reyes 4, Omolon 4, Misolas 2, Pacana 1, Daa 0, Espinas 0, Mendoza 0.

Quarterscores: 20-22, 40-34, 66-62, 90-86.

BK thwarts Alaska's bid for automatic semis seat

2010-01-20T16:16:00.000-08:00

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Burger King Whoppers jeopardized Alaska Aces' bid for an automatic semis seat after pulling off an 87-80 win Wednesday night in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City.

With nothing to gain as they were already relegated in the knockout wildcard stage, the Whoppers played loose but more focused than theAces to end their three-game skid for a 6-12 win-loss mark.

The loss was damaging to Alaska, which came into the game needing one more win to formalize its entry in the best-of-seven semifinal series.

Now, the Aces have to win their last game against Rain or Shine on Friday at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City to avoid a playoff for the No. 2 spot.

JR Quinahan scored a career-high 23 points to go along with his 10 rebounds to lead Burger King’s big win over the slumping Alaska.

“It’s a good way to close out our elimination round. This is a big morale booster for our wildcard stint,” said Whoppers head coach Yeng Guiao, who also drew 16 points from Ronjay Buenafe.

“We’re now two wins away from the quarters and one loss away from taking a long vacation,” he added.

Alaska dropped to 12-5 and is now in a must-win situation to avoid a playoff for the second automatic semis berth. The Aces have now lost three straight and four of their last five matches.

The scores:

Burger King 87 - Quinahan 23, Buenafe 16, Matias 12, Gonzales 10, R.Yee 8, Cabagnot 6, Williams 4, Belga 3, Billones 3, Sharma 2, M.Yee 0, Aban 0.

Alaska 80 - Miller 19, Tenorio 13, De Vance 12, Dela Cruz 12, Thoss 8, Hugnatan 7, Cariaso 7, Fonacier 2, Borboran 0, Ferriols 0, Cablay 0.

Quarterscores: 13-18, 34-37, 61-56, 87-80

BK thwarts Alaska's bid for automatic semis seat

2010-01-20T16:15:00.001-08:00

Taulava's jumper lifts Coca-Cola to win

2010-01-20T16:12:00.000-08:00

source: gmanews.tv

Asi Taulava hit a turn-around jumper with 1.8 seconds left, lifting Coca-Cola to a tense 91-89 win over Barako Bull and finally eliminating the Energy Boosters from the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup Wednesday at the Cuneta Astrodome.

“The Rock" made the shot against Alex Crisano just below the free-throw line, sinking the attempt he doesn’t usually make as the Tigers overcame the loss of a 20-point lead to complete their 18-game elimination round campaign with a 6-12 (win-loss) record.

Coca-Cola will thus face Burger King in the knockout stage wild card. The Whopper were still playing as of posting time, trying to foil Alaska’s bid to claim the second outright semi-finals berth.

The win also aided Rain or Shine, which is now assured of advancing to the wild card even if it loses its final elimination round match against the Aces on Friday.

“Watch out for the Tigers, we’re on the prowl," said Taulava after the game.

He finished with another double-double of 20 points and 11 rebounds.

Once again, Barako Bull has failed to make the playoffs. This is the third time that the Boosters have not advanced past the preliminary stage.

Still, it was a performance that merited respect.

Teams of lesser stuff would already have flamed out after Coca-Cola built a 74-54 lead early in the final period.

The Tigers erected that seemingly insurmountable spread after seizing control with a rare 17-0 blast bridging the second and third quarters that erased a 39-33 deficit and established a 50-39 advantage for them.

The Tigers were still ahead, 87-75, but the Energy Boosters came ferociously back with a 14-0 assault, tying it for the last time at 89 after Aries Dimaunahan hit a triple with 5 seconds to go.

The Tigers then sued for time to map out the final offensive play. Taulava received the inbounds pass, dribbled once before turning around for the game-winner.

Crisano matched his career-high of 19 points to lead the Energy Boosters.

The scores

Coca-Cola 91 - Taulava 20, David 16, Rodriguez 15, Rizada 11, Macapagal 10, Gonzales 7, Ross 6, Espino 4, Calimag 2, Bono 0, Cruz 0, Enrile 0.

Barako Bull 89 - Crisano 19, Aljamal 14, Dimaunahan 14, Duncil 12, Najorda 9, Alonzo 8, Hubalde 4, Belano 3, Menor 2, Fernandez 2, Reyes 2, Faundo 0.

Quarterscores: 21-23, 44-39, 70-54, 91-89.

SMBeer protests TnT's Zamboanga win

2010-01-19T16:10:00.000-08:00

source: Nelson Beltran | philstar.com

San Miguel Beer, keen on clinching the playoffs top seeding and giving sister team Purefoods a boost for an outright entry into the quarterfinals of the KFC PBA Philippine Cup, placed under protest the result of its game against Talk n Text in Zamboanga Saturday.

The SMB management wants a reversal of the outcome of the game, insisting Talk n Text should have automatically lost the game by forfeiture.

The Tropang Texters closed out their stint in the double-round eliminations with an 11-7 win-loss card as they edged the Beermen, 93-91, on a gutsy drive by Jimmy Alapag in the closing seconds of the out-of-towngame.

The Beermen, however, stressed the Texters should have lost the game by forfeiture as they reported to the playing court with the proper playing uniform almost an hour behind the 5 p.m. schedule.

The opening tip-off was made at 6 p.m.

PBA commissioner Sonny Barrios received SMB’s protest letter yesterday and met with key staff members but deferred making a decision on the protest.

The Texters learned that they had left their assigned light color uniforms in Manila. They arrived at the playing venue close to 6 p.m.

Apparently, the PBA couldn’t declare San Miguel the winner right away as a crowd of over 10,000 came to watch the game.

If San Miguel’s protest is upheld, Talk n Text would instead finish at 10-8, in danger of missing the Top Five.

At the moment, San Miguel (13-5) is assured of an outright semis berth, Alaska (12-4) is guaranteed of a playoff for the second semis spot while Ginebra (12-6) has a lock on a quarterfinal seat.

Purefoods (11-6), Sta. Lucia (10-7) and Talk n Text are disputing the last two outright seats in the quarters.

Coach Jong and Ginebra Kings are happy to be in quarters

2010-01-18T20:41:00.000-08:00

source: Joel Orellana | businessmirror.com.ph

Barangay Ginebra actually has a slim chance of gaining a playoff for the second automatic semifinals slot, but Kings coach Jong Uichico doubts that Alaska would lose its remaining two assignments in the KFC-Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup.

Ginebra secured a berth in the best-of-five quarterfinal series after dismantling Burger King, 122-104, on Sunday night at the Araneta Coliseum to end its double-round elimination campaign with 12-6 mark.

The Kings are in third spot with a 12-6 win-loss mark, two games behind the second-running Aces (12-4).

“Hindi na ako umaasa [sa semis],” said Uichico minutes after their easy victory over the Whopper. “I think Alaska can win one of its last two assignments but we’re happy we’re in the quarters.”

The Aces have Barako Bull and Rain or Shine in their calendar and a victory will send them in the best-of-seven semifinal series. San Miguel Beer (14-4) was the first team to reach the semifinals.

The Energy Boosters (3-14) and the Elasto Painters (4-13) are both fighting for their lives in the tournament and are expected to give Alaska the tough time before clinching bonus.

But earning a quarterfinal berth early is already quite an achievement for Ginebra, according to Uichico, and they will use the break in getting their injured superstars Jayjay Helterbrand and Mark Caguioa back in form.

“Our goal now is to be healthy and let the injured players get back in the flow of the game kasi matagal din silang nawala,” said Uichico. “Come quarterfinals, sana ready na sila.”

While the Kings have already secured a spot in the quarterfinals, three more teams are jockeying for the last two automatic berths in that stage.

Sta. Lucia Realty (10-7), Talk ’N Text (11-7) and Purefoods Tender Juicy (11-6) are fighting for the last two slots.

To advance outright, Sta. Lucia must beat Purefoods by at least 47 points on Friday. Less than that would mean another playoff battle between the two teams.

A victory by the Giants will not only give them a guaranteed spot in the quarterfinals but also they will stay alive in the hunt for the No. 2 position though it still depends on howAlaska fares in its last two matches.

The Tropang Texters are on the sideline, cheering for Purefoods to win the battle to get a free ride in the quarterfinal round.

San Miguel Beer, meanwhile, placed its game against Talk ’N text last Saturday under protest. The Tropang Texters, who won the game, 93-91, brought the wrong set of uniforms in their game in Zamboanga City.

Games Wednesday (Astrodome, Pasay City)
5:00 p.m. — Barako Bull vs Coca-Cola
7:30 p.m. — Alaska vs Burger King

Intal shines as Kings’ top stars take a break

2010-01-18T18:28:00.000-08:00

source: Waylon Galvez | mb.com.ph

JC Intal, the former Ateneo Blue Eagle, is stepping up for Barangay Ginebra in the ongoing KFC-PBA Philippine Cup.

Getting extra minutes on the floor following the absence of key players, Intal has averaged 19.5 points in the last four matches. He also contributes 7.25 rebounds, three assists, 2.25 steals and one shot block in 30.5 minutes.

With Jayjay Helterbrand on the injury list and Mark Caguioa still trying to get back into shape, Intal has given the team the much-needed firepower.

“He’s taking advantage of the opportunity,” Ginebra coach Jong Uichico said yesterday, a day after the Kings downed Burger King, 122-104. “I really don’t have anything to do with it, it’s just him. He’s been working hard.”

“He has the potential, the skills and the talent. What he needs is maturity. But he’s already there, I hope he’ll continue working hard,” added Uichico.

Against Burger King, Intal, nicknamed the “Rocket” because of his explosive moves to the basket, scored a career-best 24 points to go with his five rebounds, the same number of assists, three steals and a shot block in 31 minutes of action.

In his first 14 games with Ginebra this conference, Intal averaged only 7.9 points, 4 boards, 1.1 assists, 0.6 steal and 0.4 blocks.

The win gave Ginebra an automatic spot in the quarterfinals.

The Kings still have a legit shot at the last outright slot in the Final Four via playoff in the event Alaska drops its last two games toBurger King tomorrow and to Rain or Shine on Friday.

Games Wednesday (Astrodome, Pasay City)
5:00 p.m. — Barako Bull vs Coca-Cola
7:30 p.m. — Alaska vs Burger King

Ginebra rams Burger King, stays in semis hunt

2010-01-17T16:12:00.000-08:00

source: Nelson Beltran | philstar.com

Barangay Ginebra pummeled Burger King in the final half and completed a 122-104 rout of the Whoppers to keep its slim hopes for a crack at an outright semifinal entry in the KFC PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum last night.

The Kings, largely behind the exploits of JC Intal, Cyrus Baguio and Willy Wilson, went on a searing breakaway in the third quarter and sustained the pace in the final canto for the win that guaranteed them a spot in the Top Five.

Intal, Baguio and Wilson each scored at least 15 points as the Kings repeated over the Whoppers and finished with a 12-6 win-loss card in the double-round elimination phase.

Assured of a slot in the quarterfinals, the Kings even get a playoff shot at an outright entry into the semifinals if the Alaska Milk Aces lose their last two games versus the Whoppers Wednesday and the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters Friday.

Ginebra coach Jong Uichico, however, has conceded the slot to the Aces.

“I think Alaska can win one of two, if not two of two,” said Uichico.

Kelly Williams and Ryan Reyes churned out double-double games while four other Sta. Lucia players chipped in double-digit outputs as the Realtors clobbered the Barako Bull Energy Boosters, 108-86, in the first game to stay in the hunt for an outright quarterfinals berth.

Williams made 25 points and 11 rebounds while Reyes put in 11 points and 10 assists on top of six rebounds and four steals as the Realtors snapped a two-game losing skein for and stayed right behind the Ginebra Kings (12-6), the Purefoods Giants (11-6) and the Talk n Text Tropang Texters (11-7) in their battle for the three automatic slots in the quarters.

Marlou Aquino piled up personal conference highs of 17 points and three assists while Joshua Urbiztondo, Gabby Espinas and Joseph Yeo scored in double figures as they sent the Energy Boosters to the brink of elimination.

“I’m happy we won this game. I was really worried before the game since Barako Bull was coming off a win while our team had lost our last two games,” said Sta. Lucia coach Boyet Fernandez.

“But the guys stepped up and made things happen. With the win, we still hold our destiny. We now look forward to our game against Purefoods,” Fernandez added.

With a 10-7 win-loss record, the Realtors can force a playoff or gain outright quarters berth with a win over the Giants in their crucial game Friday at the Ynares Sports Center in Antipolo.

“Purefoods is a foot ahead of us and they beat us in our first game in Surigao. But we like our chances. The key is for us to come into the game bringing our defensive mentality,” Fernandez said.

The Energy Boosters, meanwhile, suffered their 14th loss against three wins as they were badly beaten by the Realtors in the last three quarters.

Barako Bull bows out of contention for the wildcard round if Burger King beats Alaska Milk.

Realtors edge closer to playoffs

2010-01-17T16:11:00.001-08:00

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Sta. Lucia Realty moved closer for a playoff for an automatic quarterfinal seat after dismantling Barako Bull, 108-86, Sunday night in the KFC-Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.

Kelly Williams registered his 14th double-double game for the Realtors with 25 points and 14 rebounds while veteran center Marlou Aquino scored a conference-high 17 points to lead their team to the crucial win.

Sta. Lucia improved its mark to 10-7 and must beat Purefoods Tender Juicy (11-6) on Friday to secure a playoff for the automatic quarterfinal berth.

"We’re happy we overcame this game because Barako Bull is coming off a good win against Talk ‘N Text kaya kinakabahan ako coming into this game," said Realtors head coach Boyet Fernandez who also got 14 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists from rookie Josh Urbiztondo.

"At least now, we hold our destiny. We just have to prepare ourselves dahil mahirap kalaban ang Purefoods," he added.

Ryan Reyes also had an all-around game for Sta. Lucia with 11 points, 6 rebounds, 10 assists and 4 steals while Gabby Espinas and Joseph Yeo finished with 11 and 10 markers respectively.

The loss placed the Energy Boosters on the brink of elimination as they slipped deeper at the cellar with a 3-14 mark.

Barako Bull must win its last game against Coca-Cola and hope that Rain or Shine (4-13) will bow to Alaska to force a playoff for the No. 9 spot in the knockout wildcard stage.

The Energy Boosters, which came from a 99-97 upset win over defending champion Talk ‘N Text, actually had a strong start and even led after the first period, 32-31, but Sta. Lucia’s offense finally clicked in the next period and outscored their opponents, 31-17, to grab a 62-49 halftime lead.

The 37-year old Aquino started the Realtors’ scoring binge as he had already 13 in the first period then one-time MVP Williams took over in the succeeding quarters en route to an easy win although BarakoBull tried to get closer to no avail.

Alex Criasno’s 3-point basket shoved the Energy Boosters within 2, 60-62, but Sta. Lucia finished the third period with a 15-8 run to push the lead back to 77-68 entering the fourth quarter and theRealtors were never threatened since then.

Yousif Aljamal led Barako Bull with 20 points and 11 rebounds while Leo Najorda added 19. Crisano and Ogie Menor chipped in 12 and 11 points respectively for coach Leo Isaac.

The scores:

STA. LUCIA 108 - Williams 25, Aquino 17, Urbiztondo 14, Reyes 11, Espinas 11, Yeo 10, Larong 8, Daa 4, Misolas 4, Waters 2, Omolon 2, Mendoza.

BARAKO BULL 86 - Aljamal 20, Najorda 19, Crisano 12, Menor 11, Faundo 6, Alonzo 6, Dimaunahan 4, Belano 4, Duncil 2, Hubalde 2, Reyes 0, Chia 0.

QUARTERSCORES: 31-32, 62-49, 77-68, 108-86.

Fil-Ams file counter raps vs Gin Kings

2010-01-14T17:16:00.001-08:00

source: Rhodina Villanueva | philstar.com

Two Filipino-Americans who claimed being assaulted by members of the Ginebra San Miguel team after a near traffic mishap at the South Luzon Expressway Saturday night filed frustrated murder charges against the team before the Taguig City Prosecutor’s Office.

In his complaint-affidavit, Joeffrey Orquia, of 1412-B One Serendra, McKinley, Parkway Ave, Taguig City, named assistant coach Arthur dela Cruz, players Junthy Valenzuela, Willie Wilson, Ronald Tubid, Homer Se and five other Ginebra team members he was not able to identify, as respondents.

Orquia said the Ginebra players took turns in beating him up and shouted invectives after he accosted the Ginebra bus driver and told him that their team vehicle almost hit their car while cruising along the SLEX.

He said the bus almost hit and ram their car when he tried to move to another lane while approaching a construction area near the Alabang viaduct.

At the C5 toll exit, Orquia, with friend Tristan Bael, decided to get off the car (Ford Lynx with plate number ZBL 921) and told the driver about the near mishap.

He said he was knocking at the bus door when Dela Cruz threw mineral water bottle at him. Valenzuela also joined in hitting him with another mineral water bottle.

Then the group reportedly got off the bus and started beating him. Orquia said he tried to parry the blows but the respondents simply overpowered him and chased him as he ran into their car.

Orquia said he was brought to the hospital after he suffered contusions, lacerated wounds, hematoma, hemorrhage and fractures.

Meanwhile, Bael, of No. 407 Andalucia Boulevard, Vista de Lago, Taguig City, in his complaint, identified Enrico Villanueva as the one who attacked him together with other Ginebra team members.

Bael said Villanueva held him while the others beat him up.

He said he sustained serious injuries in different parts of the body.

The two complainants said they gave their statement to Senior Police Officer 1 Ramon Paggadu of the Bicutan police station. They claimed that theGinebra players were not invited to give their side on the incident.

In an earlier interview, Paggadu, investigator of the Highway Patrol Group of SLEX, said it was Dela Cruz who complained of sustaining injuries in the incident.

Can Kings make it to Final Four?

2010-01-13T18:16:00.001-08:00

by Joaquin Henson | philstar.com

There are 11 games left in the PBA Philippine Cup double-round eliminations and the only sure thing is league-leading San Miguel Beer (13-3) is safely in the semifinals.

The teams are bunched up close to each other at the top and in the bottom. Here’s how they stand so far – No. 1 San Miguel Beer (13-3), No. 2 Alaska (11-3), No. 3 Barangay Ginebra (11-6), No. 4 Purefoods (10-6), No. 5 Talk ‘N’ Text (10-7), No. 6 Sta. Lucia Realty (9-6), No. 7 Burger King (5-11), No. 8 Rain Or Shine (4-12), No. 9 Coca-Cola (3-12) and No. 10 Barako Bull (3-13).

At the end of the eliminations, the lowest-ranked team is eliminated and the top two finishers advance to the semifinals outright. Teams that end up third, fourth and fifth qualify for the quarterfinals, leaving No. 6 to play No. 9 and No. 7 to play No. 8 in a pair of knockout games to start the wildcards. The winners of the two knockout games then slug it out in another do-or-die duel for the last quarterfinals ticket. That means the last quarterfinals qualifier will survive two knockout games.

The quarterfinal pairings will be No. 3 against the wildcard survivor and No. 4 against No. 5, both best-of-five series. Winners then move on to play the top two finishers in the best-of-seven semifinals. Survivors wind up disputing the crown in the best-of-seven finals.

Fans are wondering if Ginebra has a chance to make it to the semifinals with just one game – against Burger King on Sunday – remaining in its calendar. The answer is yes but it won’t be easy.

First, Ginebra must beat the Whoppers to raise its record to 12-6. The magic number of wins for an automatic semifinals ticket is 13 so the Kings will fall short by one.

Second, Alaska must blow at least three of its last four games – which is highly unlikely – to finish at 12-6. If Purefoods loses one of its last two assignments left, then Ginebra and Alaska will figure in a playoff for the second semifinals slot. If Alaska loses all its last four games – even more improbable, and Ginebra beats the Whoppers, then the Kings advance to the semifinals outright.

The scenario becomes even more interesting if Sta. Lucia sweeps its last three assignments against Alaska, Barako Bull and Purefoods to improve to 12-6.

* * * *

In another possibility, there could be a three-way tie for second place involving Purefoods, Alaska and Ginebra. That will happen if Purefoods beats Alaska and Sta. Lucia in the Giants’ last two games, the Aces win only one (over the Realtors) of its last four contests and Ginebra defeats Burger King. In this situation, Purefoods, Alaska and Ginebra will tote identical 12-6 records.

In a three-way tie for second, the team with the lowest quotient drops down to No. 4 and the other two face off for the No. 2 spot. At the moment, Ginebra is minus 16, Purefoods is minus 4 and Alaska is plus 20.

To make the three-way tie a reality, the Giants must beat the Aces which means Purefoods will improve on its quotient and it will take a 37-point loss by Alaska for Ginebra to move up in the quotient ladder. In effect, a three-way tie for second involving Purefoods, Alaska and Ginebra will relegate the Kings out of the semis picture.

Another three-way logjam for second place could involve Alaska, Ginebra and Sta. Lucia. They will finish at 12-6 if Alaska wins only one of its four remaining games (losing to Sta. Lucia in the process), Ginebra beats Burger King and the Realtors repulse the Aces, Barako Bull and Purefoods.

Here are the remaining games for each team: San Miguel Beer (Coca-Cola, Talk ‘N’ Text), Alaska (Sta. Lucia, Purefoods, Burger King, Rain Or Shine), Ginebra (Burger King), Purefoods (Alaska, Sta. Lucia), Talk ‘N’ Text (San Miguel Beer), Sta. Lucia (Alaska, Barako Bull, Purefoods), Burger King (Ginebra, Alaska), Rain Or Shine (Coca-Cola, Alaska), Coca-Cola (San Miguel Beer, Rain Or Shine, Barako Bull) and Barako Bull (Sta. Lucia, Coca-Cola).

* * * *

The way it looks, Alaska will join San Miguel in the semis as all the Aces need to clinch an outright ticket is to win two of its last four games against Sta. Lucia, Purefoods, Burger King and Rain Or Shine. Alaska has lost two of its last three but overall, the Aces have dropped only three games – to Rain Or Shine, Coca-Cola and Ginebra. In the first round, Alaska beat the Realtors, 91-83, the Whoppers, 87-73, and the Giants, 101-87.

It’s also possible that five teams could end up tied for second place with identical 11-7 records. But that would mean Alaska losing four in a row, Ginebra bowing to Burger King, Purefoods yielding to Sta. Lucia, Talk ‘N’ Text beating San Miguel Beer and the Realtors winning two of its last three games.

Since the PBA allows only one single playoff for one position, the two teams with the highest quotients will meet to determine the second outright semis qualifier. The loser in the playoff will slide to No. 3 and the next three positions will be decided by the quotient system.

Sta. Lucia might even pull a surprise by making it to the semis outright. The Realtors will do it if they win their last three assignments,Alaska loses four straight and Ginebra is upset by Burger King.

The battle to avoid the cellar is just as fierce. The Energy Boosters got a major lift when they upset Talk ‘N’ Text, 99-97, last Sunday. Their game against Coca-Cola next Wednesday could be the decider.

Aces score shaky win over Realtors

2010-01-13T18:15:00.002-08:00

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Alaska clinched at least a playoff game for the second automatic semifinal seat with a shaky 85-77 win over Sta. Lucia Realty Wednesday night in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.

Veteran guard Jeffrey Cariaso had his productive game in a while with 13 points, all in the second half, to cover up an anemic performance from 2-time MVP Willie Miller to lead the Aces to their 12th win against 3 losses.

Joe Devance led Alaska with 17 points but it was Cariaso’s steady performance in the second half and LA Tenorio’s efficient quarterbacking that allowed the Aces to come back in the game and end a 2-game slide.

The win shut the door on the automatic semis bids of the Realtors and Talk ‘N Text.

Sta. Lucia was trailing 72-79 when Kelly Williams banged in a three-pointer that started a mini 5-0 run to close the gap at 77-79 with 53.1 seconds left.

But Devance scored on the next play on Miller’s pass and the Realtors came out empty handed in their next two possessions that resulted to Tenorio’s four free throws to seal the win for Alaska.

Williams paced the Realtors with 14 points and 14 rebounds. They dropped to 9-7. Joseph Yeo and Ryan Reyes also had 14 points apiece for coach Boyet Fernandez.

Tigers in huge win
Coca-Cola, meanwhile, pulled off an important victory over early semifinalist San Miguel Beer, 118-107, to keep a one-game lead over Barako Bull.

Asi Taulava, Norman Gonzales and RJ Rizada came through with solid performances to help the Tigers notched their fourth win against 12 losses and tied Rain or Shine for the 8th and 9th positions.

Taulava fired a game-high 27 points on 10-of-16 shooting from the field to go along with his 15 rebounds and 6 assists in another fine performance for the one-time MVP of the league.

Gonzales hit a conference-high 22 markers while Rizada had a career-high 22 points, 12 came in the final quarter where Coke weathered the rally by the Beermen, who already booked the first automatic semifinal seat last week.

“We’re lucky to catch San Miguel in a game that has no importance to them and on the other hand is very important to us,” said Tigers head coach Bo Perasol who also got double figures in points from Larry Rodriguez and Mark Macapagal.

“We have to feel better with ourselves because we have two important games left, we must make sure we don’t get eliminated,” he added.

Rodriguez finished with 14 points while Macapagal had 13, 11 came in the first canto that set the tone for the Tigers.

They posted an 11-point spread twice in the fourth quarter, the last at 106-95 before the Beermen reeled off 8 straight points capped by back-to-back 3-pointers by Lordy Tugade and Jonas Villanueva to threaten at 103-106 with 2:02 remaining.

But Taulava hit a clutch jumper and Rodriguez added with an undergoal stab to get some breathing room, 110-103, 1:114 left.

After Arwind Santos tipped in his own missed shot for San Miguel, 105-110, Coke ended the game with a 6-2 run to halt the Beermen’s 4-game winning run.

Santos led San Miguel with 22 points while Tugade added 19. Mike Cortez and Dennis Miranda each had 12 for the Beermen, who stayed at the top of the team standing with 13-4 loss slate.

Coke failed to utilize new recruits Gary David and Chico Lanete who came in via a trade with Burger King last January 4. David served a 1-game suspension while Lanete has a hamstring injury.

Tigers mangle Beermen, 118-107

2010-01-13T18:15:00.001-08:00

source: Waylon Galvez | mb.com.ph

Coca-Cola, its back against the wall, stunned erstwhile league-leader San Miguel Beer, 118-107, Thursday night to fuel its playoff hopes in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.

Asi Taulava anchored the Tigers’ victory with a double-double 27 points and 15 rebounds with six assists.

Coca-Cola, which avenged its 84-107 loss to the same team last Nov. 21 in Cebu City, also got solid contributions from guard RJ Rizada, who averages only 6.6points this all-Filipino conference but came off the bench to score a career-best 20 points, 12 in the fourth quarter, and forward Norman Gonzales, who chipped in 22 points and eight boards.

The Tigers were up by 11, 106-95, after Larry Rodriguez converted his freebies off Mick Pennisi, who was assessed a Flagrant Foul Penalty 1 for planting an elbow on Rodriguez’s neck with 2:55 left.

But the Beermen, playing without injured players Jay Washington (back), Dorian Pena (knee), Danny Seigle (strained leg), and Danny Ildefonso (ankle), rallied with an 8-0 explosion to threaten, 103-106, a little over two minutes to go.

Taulava, however, scored on a drive, and, after a miss by Enrico Villanueva, Rodriguez scored to give the Tigers breathing room, 110-103, with 1:14 to play.

The victory improved Coca-Cola’s win-loss record to 4-12 for a share of eighth spot with idle Rain or Shine.

The Beermen, who have clinched the first automatic semifinals slot, slipped to 13-4.

Coke coach Bo Perasol credited his players for stepping up big time in a game that has a lot of importance in their playoff bid.

“We’re lucky to catch San Miguel in a game that has no importance to them, but is very important for us. I told my players that whatever happens, we have to feel good for ourselves because we have two important games,” Perasol said.

Perasol is referring to Coke’s last two games against Rain or Shine this Friday at the Big Dome and on January 20 versus Barako Bull.

“We’ll make sure that we’ll not be the first to be eliminated this conference,” added Perasol, who is now 3-6 since he took over the Tigers, replacing Kenneth Duremdes, now the team’s alternate governor in the PBA board.

Rodriguez had 14 points, 12 rebounds, while Mark Macapagal had 13 for the Tigers, who missed the services of Gary David, serving a one-game suspension for his F2 on Purefoods’ Rico Maierhofer, and injured Chico Lanete. They were acquired in a trade with Burger King last month.

The scores:
First Game
COCA-COLA 118 – Taulava 27, Gonzales 22, Rizada 20, Rodriguez 14, Macapagal 13, Calimag 8, Ross 4, Enrile 4, Bono 2, Cruz 2, Espino 2.
SAN MIGUEL 107 – Santos 22, Tugade 19, Cortez 12, Miranda 12, Pennisi 11, Miranda 11, Custodio 8, Villanueva 6, Racela 5, Hontiveros 5, Eman 4, Holper 4.
Quarters: 28-30, 51-47, 82-74, 118-107.

Williams, Intal are week's best players in Philippine Cup

2010-01-12T16:16:00.001-08:00

source: gmanews.tv

One has already made his mark in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) while the other has yet to make a bigger impact. Sta. Lucia Realty's Kelly Williams and Barangay Ginebra's JC Intal earned KFC/Accel-PBA Press Corps Co-Players of the Week honors after boosting their respective teams' campaigns in the homestretch of the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup.

Williams and Intal shared the award after putting up solid numbers to lead their respective teams to back-to-back wins during the January 4 to 10 playdate in the Philippine Cup.

It was Williams’ second POTW award when he shared the honors with Alaska’s LA Tenorio for the period of Nov. 16 to 22 while Intal earned his first weekly citation.

Williams, a former rookie of the year winner and 2007 MVP, led the Realtors in their victories over Rain or Shine and Burger King. He averaged 20.0 points, 18.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 2.5 steals and 1.0 blocked shot as Sta. Lucia improved to a 9-6 record to move closer of claiming an outright quarterfinals berth.

"(Williams) has been working hard since he was given the go-signal to play," said Sta. Lucia coach Boyet Fernandez of his prized forward who still needs to fully recover from the blood disorder that sidelined him in the latter stages of the last season’s Fiesta Cup.

"As his coach I'm so happy and proud of him. The last two games were an indication of how (Williams) is doing to get back to his game. He's been acting as the leader of this team. I do hope and pray that he will recover fully from his illness," added Fernandez.

For Williams, it is simply a matter of what he and his teammates can do to help Sta. Lucia’s cause. "We have been working hard as a team and I'm impressed at how the team is responding to coach Boyet's challenges to work hard."

While Intal, after scoring a career-high 20 points in the Kings’ 106-97 Christmas Day win over Coca-Cola, proved he can be a reliable scorer in Ginebra’s two victories against Talk ‘N Text and Alaska.

Intal logged in averages of 17.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.0 blocks in those wins as the Kings occupied third place with an 11-6 record.

Ginebra coach Jong Uichico said Intal's efforts to improve on his game are the primary reason why the former Ateneo Blue Eagle is having a break-out conference. “He is playing to his potential because he is a hard worker and is willing to work on his weaknesses."

Ginebra assistant coach hurt in traffic row

2010-01-10T16:10:00.000-08:00

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings assistant coach Arthur dela Cruz wanted to prevent a traffic spat involving 2 Filipino-Americans from escalating but he got hurt instead in Alabang, Muntinlupa City early Sunday.

Dela Cruz’s swollen left hand suffered a fracture during the traffic row that happened at 1 a.m. He also has cuts on his knees and legs.

Senior Police Officer 1 Ramon Pagaddu, investigator of the Highway Patrol Group of South Luzon Expressway (SLEX), said the 2 Fil-Ams aboard a Ford Lynx (plate number ZBL 921) thought the tourist bus, with Ginebra players on board, forcibly got near them.

The Ford Lynx passengers were identified as Orquia Joeffrey Lacuesta and Tristan Bael. The car chased the bus until the C-5 exit.

The Fil-Ams reportedly went down their car and knocked on the door of the bus.

'Seemingly under the influence'

According to Pagaddu, the suspects were “seemingly under the influence of liquor.” The bus door was broken after being whacked with a skateboard.

Dela Cruz was trying to stop the Fil-Ams from forcing the driver, Likong Leutemio Olami, to go down the bus. It caught him by surprise when the suspects pulled him down the bus.

Olami and dela Cruz refused to be interviewed by the media.

“Di ako tumulong, hinatak nila ako. Inaawat ko nga yong driver. Di ko alam nangyari, sabi ko lang tama na tapos hinatak nila ako palabas. Dalawa humatak sa akin. Tumama kamay ko, hinatak nila ako,” dela Cruz said in the police precinct.

'Simple misunderstanding'

Meanwhile, Ginebra assistant coach and former pro Allan Caidic said he was sleeping when the incident occurred.

“Natutulog ako, simple misunderstanding lang sa traffic siguro, galing kaming game sa Batangas. On the way back dito, sa may C-5 exit dito, nagkaroon ng commotion,” noted Caidic.

“Yung dalawang Fil-Am ata yon. What I’ve heard, somewhere in Alabang, biglang may mga cones, they want to change lane, right of way yung bus so lumabas, parang na-cut. I don't know ha, natutulog ako. So hinabol niya hanggang sa pagdating dito sa exit, bumaba yung dalawa, kinakalampag yung bus,” he continued.

Caidic said the officials have already sent their players home.

The Fil-Am suspects, on the other hand, did not show up at the precinct.

Barako Bull beats TNT, end 11-game losing streak

2010-01-10T16:09:00.000-08:00

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Barako Bull halted an 11-game losing streak after shocking defending champion Talk ‘N Text, 99-97, to stay alive for a possible stint in the knock-out wildcard stage.

Richard Alonzo had a near perfect shooting game with 23 points on 9-of-10 shooting from the field but it was the clutch plays of ex-TNT guard Felix Belano who gave the Energy Boosters some cushion in the end.

“Pumipitik-pitik pa,” said Barako Bull head coach Leo Isaac who also got 21 points and 8 rebounds from Leo Najorda off the bench. “Two games left, at least hawak namin ngayon an gaming kapalaran.”

Belano fired a 3-pointer and stole the ball on Jimmy Alapag to give the Energy Boosters a 95-89 cushion before the Tropang Texters unloaded a quick 8-3 run to slice the lead to 97-98 under 30 seconds left.

Jojo Duncil split his free throws to give Barako Bull a 99-97 lead, 15.7 ticks left but Harvey Carey muffed two potential game-tying shots and Ranilde de Ocampo’s follow-up shot also misfired, allowing the Energy Boosters to escape with the win.

Alapag and Jason Castro finished with 23 and 22 points respectively for Talk ‘N Text, which absorbed its second straight loss and slipped to 10-7.

Barako Bull 99 - Alonzo 23, Najorda 21, Belano 13, Duncil 10, Crisano 9, Menor 6, Reyes 6, Dimaunahan 6, Fernandez 3, Aljamal 2, Chia 0.

Talk N' Text 97 - Alapag 23, Castro 22, De Ocampo R. 17, Carey 10, Cardona 8, Escobal 5, Dillinger 4, Peek 2, Ritualo 2, De
Ocampo Y. 2, Belasco 2.

Quarterscore: 22-22, 41-47, 69-69, 99-97

Purefoods beats Rain or Shine, stays on track for outright Semis berths

2010-01-10T16:07:00.000-08:00

source: PBA.ph

KG Canaleta propped Purefoods past gritty Rain or Shine 101-88 Sunday, keeping the Giants' hopes for an automatic semifinals seat alive in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.

Canaleta scattered 14 of his 15 points inside the last 13 minutes of play that gave immeasurable boost to a Purefoods team that almost squandered what was once a 19-point lead.

In the end, the spark Canaleta gave propped the Giants to their 10th win in 16 games.

Should Purefoods win its remaining games against Alaska and Sta. Lucia Realty, then it has a chance for the No. 2 slot behind 13-3 San Miguel Beer and the remaining outright semis seat that comes with it.

The Giants could even grab the berth outright provided the 11-3 Aces and 10-6 Talk ‘N Text do not win any of their own remaining games. The Tropang Texters are taking on cellar-dweller Barako Bull later Sunday.

“It's really tight at the upper half of the standings and we really didn't want to lose the opportunity to have a crack at the second semis slot. As long as there's light we'll continue to pursue it,” said Purefoods coach Ryan Gregorio.

Even missing the slot and being relegated to an outright quarterfinals slot, reserved for the third to fifth placers after the 18-game eliminations, is still fine with Gregorio.

“At this point, an automatic quarterfinals slot is something really worth working for. But as I told the boys, we must elevate our goal. In case we miss the semis at least we're still in the quarters and that's still a good place to be,” he explained.

Rain or Shine was looking for a win that will assure it of a place in the wildcard phase. Now, with a second straight loss that was also its 12th in 16games, it is in danger of being caught by chasers Coca-Cola, 3-12, and 2-13 Barako Bull.

The 10th-placed team makes an early exit while the sixth to ninth teams go through the knockout wildcard.

Led by Gabe Norwood's career-high 29 points, the Elasto Painters did put up one whale of a fight that saw them whittle what was a daunting deficit to just 63-67, 2:21 left in the third period.

But there was simply too much Purefoods, typified by Canaleta's explosion.

“It's always hard to play against Rain or Shine. They have the personnel, but they just couldn't close out games,” said Gregorio.

“We were really expecting them to make a run, and they did. That team has so much pride. When we were starting to miss our shots, we turned to Canaleta and he scored 14 in the second half.

“That is just basketball. They make a run and we weather the storm and tonight we were able to do it.”

The 6-foot-4 former Slam Dunk King drained a set triple and hit a baseline runner, before James Yap's buzzer-beating triple from 24 feet gave theGiants a 75-64 lead.

James Yap had another triple that put Purefoods safely ahead, 94-75, only 4:02 left in the game.

The 2006 MVP wound up with 23 points with Kerby Raymundo adding 22 and Roger Yap 14, eight rebounds and four assists.

Sol Mercado's 20 points and eight assists led those who backstopped Norwood, who also had seven rebounds and five assists, but went dry despite playing the entire fourth period.

It was all Norwood for RoS in the early goings.

Last year's Rookie of the Year already had 21 points in the first half but did not get much support as the Elasto Painters found themselves trailing by 31-50 and 35-52 at the half.

The scores:

Purefoods 101 - Yap J. 23, Raymundo 22, Canaleta 15, Yap R. 14, Maierhofer 9, Allado 6, Pingris 5, Artadi 4, Timberlake 3, Reavis 0.

Rain or Shine 88 - Norwood 29, Mercado 20, Chan 12, Hrabak 11, Telan 9, Laure 4, Cruz 2, Arana 1, Alfad 0, Arellano 0, Tang 0, Reyes 0.

Quarterscores: 31-15, 52-35, 75-64, 101-88.

Ginebra beats Alaska, keeps outright Semis bid alive

2010-01-10T16:04:00.000-08:00

source: PBA.ph

BATANGAS – Barangay Ginebra stayed on the romp on the road, firming up its bid for a slot in the Magic Five with a stirring 93-90 come-from-behind win over Alaska Milk at the Batangas City Sports Center here Saturday night.

The Kings waged a fierce second-half siege largely behind the exploits of their acrobatic slashers, overcoming an 18-point deficit for the key victory that sent the team to solo third entering the homestretch of the KFC PBA Philippine Cup elimination phase.

High-flyers Cyrus Baguio, JC Intal and Ronald Tubid fuelled the Kings’ uprising that led to the team’s sixth straight triumph on the road dating back to the 2009 Fiesta Conference.

Barangay Ginebra thus jacked up its record to 11-6 for solo third ahead of Talk 'N Text (10-6), Sta. Lucia (9-6) and Purefoods (9-6).

Returning from a three-week rest, the Aces buckled down to work early but failed to sustain their effort, thus, missing another shot for at least a playoff for an outright semis seat.

With San Miguel Beer putting the lock on the first outright semis seat, Alaska is now in pursuit of the second semis berth along with the Kings, Tropang Texters, Realtors and Giants.

The Aces have Sta. Lucia, Purefoods and Burger King for their last three assignments in the elims with two victories guaranteeing the team of an automatic semis passage.

The Kings started flat but frolicked in the second half with tremendous boost on the exploits of Baguio, Intal and Tubid.

The three deadly slashers put in at least 17 points each for the Kings who overcame a 24-42 deficit and a 29-point explosion by Alaska main man Willie Miller.

Willy Wilson added 11 points on top of numerous hustle plays helping Ginebra get past Alaska in the penultimate stop of the PBA Phoenix Fuel on Tour.

The Philippine Cup titlists three seasons ago, the Kings scored heavily on fastbreak plays to negate Miller’s personal conference-best output.

Ginebra piled up 11 fastbreak points to none for Alaska in the third quarter as the Kings raced ahead at 62-61.

Keeping the pace in the fourth, the Kings erected a 15-point spread at 85-70 before facing the Aces’ own chase at the finish.

The Aces jumped the gun on the Kings, building an 18-point margin at 42-24 before settling for a 44-34 lead at halftime.

Miller ran a show in the first quarter then the Alaska reserves took over in the second period as they dominated the Kings in the first 24 minutes of play.

The two-time MVP winner nearly outscored the entire Ginebra team in the opening period, making 15 points on a fierce 7-of-8 field-goal shooting. (SB)

The scores:

Barangay Ginebra 93 – Baguio 20, Tubid 17, Intal 17, Wilson 11, Cruz 9, Salvacion 6, Menk 6, Mamaril 4, Villanueva 3, White 2.

Alaska 90 – Miller 29, Devance 13, Dela Cruz 13, Tenorio 11, Thoss 8, Hugnatan 6, Borboran 5, Fonacier 3, Cariaso 2, Sotto 0.

Quarterscores: 18-25, 34-44, 62-61, 93-90

Helterbrand raring to go, but Kings still wary

2010-01-07T16:26:00.000-08:00

source: Joel Orellana | businessmirror.com.ph

Jayjay Helterbrand may be all set to plunge into action, but Barangay Ginebra is not taking any chances.

Kings head coach Jong Uichico said the reigning Most Valuable Player (MVP) will most likely suit up in the team’s final elimination-round game in the KFC-Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Philippine Cup.

“Mahirap biglain ’yung injury ni Jayjay. Unlike kay Mark [Caguioa] na puwede ilaro for a few minutes, kailangan pa ring ipahinga ’yung injury [hamstring] ni Jayjay,” Uichico said minutes after beating Talk ’N Text, 105-82, on Friday night at the Araneta Coliseum.

“We might field him in the last game of the elimination. We just want to make sure that he’s 100-percent ready when he plays again,” Uichico added.

Caguioa, after missing Ginebra’s last 13 games due to tendonitis, scored eight points in nine minutes in his return to the Kings’ lineup.

The victory allowed Ginebra to catch up with the Tropang Texters in third spot with a 10-6 win-loss mark, boosting its chances for a top-five finish.

With two games left, the Kings actually have a mathematical chance to force a playoff for the No. 2 spot for the automatic semifinals slot but fate is not on their hands anymore.

“Getting into the quarterfinals was our original target, especially with the injuries we have at the start of the tournament,” said Uichico, whose wards play Alaska on Saturday in Batangas City and Burger King on January 17.

“I don’t know if we can still get an outright semis berth but we’ll be happy if we land in the quarterfinal round,” he added.

Helterbrand has not played in the last seven games of the team although there were times he was in uniform but was not fielded in by the coaching staff.

Caguioa gives Uichico a boost in offense, but the 2001 Rookie of the Year was still a step slower in his comeback game against the Tropang Texters, the reason he was used sparingly.

“If ever Mark will play again in our next game, ganoon lang ang minutes na puwedeng ibigay ko sa kanya dahil hindi pa namin siya puwede biglain,” said Uichico.

“We’ll see kung ano ang magiging reaction ng knees niya after this game. Hopefully, kung makapasok kami sa semis, makumpleto na kami,” he added.

Another key Ginebra player on the sideline is Junthy Valenzuela, who is yet to see action in the All-Filipino tournament. Valenzuela underwent knee surgery but has yet to take part in a full practice session with the team.

Gin Kings trip Texters; Purefoods beats Gilas

2010-01-06T16:09:00.000-08:00

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Barangay Ginebra jeopardized Talk ‘N Text’s bid for a possible automatic semifinal slot after pulling off a 105-82 rout in the KFC-Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Philippine Cup Wednesday night at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Kings outscored the Tropang Texters in the fourth quarter by 19 points, 31-12, to turn a tight contest into a lopsided one, thus tying the latter at the No. 3 spot with a 10-6 win-loss mark.

JC Intal had another solid game for Ginebra with 19 points, including a 360-degree one-hand slam to highlight the team’s onslaught in the payoff period.

Ronald Tubid added 18 markers while Enrico Villanueva and Eric Menk finished with 12 and 10 markers respectively for the Kings, who welcomed Mark Caguioa after sitting out the last 13 games due to ailing knees.

“Nice to get this win and hopefully we can get two more para maka-sure na sa quarters,” said Ginebra mentor Jong Uichico.

The Kings were leading by just 4 after the third period, 74-70, when Intal engineered a 22-4 burst to erect a 96-74 advantage with 5:12 left.

Since then, Talk ‘N Text was never able to recover as it stumbled on a series of turnovers and suffered its worst loss in almost a year.

Jimmy Alapag paced Tropang Texters with 17 points. Jason Castro chipped in 15 while Harvey Carey and Ranidel de Ocampo had 12 and 11 points respectively.

The Kings held down Mark Cardona to just 7 points on 3-of-11 shooting from the field. Cardona was averaging 21.8 points per game prior the match. He collected two quick fouls in the first period, the reason why coach Chot Reyes benched him almost the whole first half.

Realtors bury Painters

Meanwhile, Sta. Lucia Realty banked on the explosive game of Kelly Williams and escaped with a crucial 95-91 win over Rain or Shine to keep its quarterfinal slot hope flickering.

Williams fired a game-high 25 points and grabbed a career-high tying 19 rebounds to lift their Realtors to their 8th win against 6 losses.

“Thumbs up to Kelly. He really played well tonight especially in the last two minutes of the game,” said Sta. Lucia head coach Boyet Fernandez who also drew 12 points from Joseph Yeo off the bench.

“He’s really working hard in practice and we’re happy he’s back now,” Fernandez added.

Jason Misolas added 10 while Josh Urbiztondo and Nelbert Omolon had 9 points apiece for Sta. Lucia.

The Elasto Painters were in the lead after Jeff Chan buried a three-pointer, 89-87, with 2:18 remaining before Williams hit the next 6points of the game, including a difficult fall-away jumper to give the Realtors a 93-89 lead with 56.3 ticks left.

Rain or Shine got the chance to move closer when it threatened at 91-95, but it failed to convert its free throws. It thus fell deeper in the team standings with its 4-11 slate.

Gabe Norwood led the Elasto Painters with 18 points while Chan added 17. Sol Mercado had a fine all-around performance with 14 points, 6 rebounds and 8 assists.

Giants down Gilas

Roger Yap led Purefoods Tender Juicy’s balanced attack with 16 points in dismantling Smart Gilas, 99-81, in their tune-up match in the curtain-raiser.

James Yap added 14 markers while Nino Canaleta and Romel Adducul each had 11 points for Purefoods, which led from start to finish.

Kerby Raymundo started the team’s strong start with 6 quick points to take a 32-18 lead after the first period. The lead ballooned to 54-38 going to second half.

Roger Yap then unloaded 8 of his 16 points in the third canto as the Giants erected a 74-57 cushion and were never threatened since then.

Team captain Chris Tiu led Smart Gilas with 18 points while Japeth Aguilar added 12. Mark Barroca chipped in 11 points while Dylan Ababou and Mac Baracael each had 10 points for the national team of coach Rajko Toroman.

The scores:

Ginebra 105 - Intal 19, Tubid 18, Villanueva 12, Menk 10, Cruz 8, Caguioa 8, Baguio 7, Wilson 6, Mamaril 6, Salvacion 6, White 5, Abarrientos 0.

Talk n Text 82 - Alapag 17, Castro 15, Carey 12, De Ocampo R. 11, Cardona 7, Belasco 5, Dillinger 4, Peek 4, Ritualo 0, Isip 3, Escobal 0, De Ocampo Y. 0.

Quarterscores: 28-20, 43-47, 74-70, 105-82

Williams carries Realtors to win over Rain or Shine

2010-01-06T16:07:00.000-08:00

source: gmanews.tv

Kelly Williams carried the Sta. Lucia Realtors on his broad shoulders at crunch time, draining six of the team’s final eight points in a big 95-91 win over Rain or Shine Wednesday night at the resumption of the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.

The 6-foot-6 Fil-Am showed the way for Sta. Lucia with 25 points, none of them more important than the pair of free throws and successive fade-away jumpers he made that clinched the Realtors’ ninth win in 15 games and a possible outright quarterfinals berth.

“It only says that he’s the leader of this team," said Sta. Lucia coach Boyet Fernandez of his prized player, the 2007 league Most Valuable Player (MVP).

“I give him the thumbs up. He really stepped up down the stretch. Those were really crucial shots."

Williams scored 15 points in the fourth quarter, went 9-for-19 from the field and 7-for-9 from the foul line while grabbing a career best-tying 19 rebounds.

He came through with his heroics the moment the Realtors found themselves trailing after Jeff Chan knocked in a shot-clock beating three-pointer that gave Rain or Shine the lead for the last time at 89-87.

Williams tied the count with two free throws, then connected on a looping fall-away with 1:21 left to give the Realtors the lead back at 91-89.

After Sol Mercado’s pass to Jay-R Reyes resulted in a turnover, Williams once more came through with a big basket, launching an attempt that looked short, only for the ball to bounce once as it hit the rim, then trickled in as theRealtors went up, 93-89, with 56 seconds to go.

Gabe Norwood then had a miss, and Ryan Reyes was deliberately fouled. Reyes hit both free throws, practically sealing the outcome with a 95-89 advantage, time down to 30.9 seconds.

Norwood paced the Elasto Painters with 18 points, but not enough to prevent the team from suffering its 11th defeat with only four wins to show, still in danger of missing the playoffs.

Sta. Lucia now has four games left before it concludes its 18-game elimination round campaign, needing, according to Fernandez, a sweep for a safe passage to the quarterfinals.

“Ang sabi ko sa mga bata we need to sweep our last five games including this one," said Fernandez. “So Rain or Shine is out of the way. But we’ll take it one game at a time. We don’t want to be relegated to the wild card, masyadong delikado."

The scores

Sta. Lucia Realty 95 – Williams 25, Yeo 12, Misolas 10, Urbiztondo 9, Omolon 9, Reyes 8, Aquino 8, Espinas 5, Mendoza 5, Pacana 4, Daa 0.

Rain or Shine 91 – Norwood 18, Chan 17, Mercado 14, Laure 13, Cruz 10, Tang 7, Arana 4, Reyes 3, Hrabak 3, Ibanes 2, Telan 0.

Quarterscores: 28-20; 47-51; 71-69; 95-91

Purefoods Giants spoil Gilas’ farewell match

2010-01-06T16:05:00.000-08:00

source: Joel Orellana | businessmirror.com.ph

Smart Gilas wanted to end its campaign on a bright note, but Purefoods was a tough nut to crack.

The Philippine developmental pool dropped its final tune-up game in the KFC-Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Philippine Cup, bowing to the Giants, 81-99, on Wednesday at the Araneta Coliseum.

Roger Yap led the Giants with 16 points, while James Yap added 14 for the Giants.

The young squad, coached by Serbian Rajko Toroman, ended its guest stint in the All-Filipino tournament with three wins and seven losses.

The three wins were scored at the expense of Coca-Cola (98-93), Rain or Shine (96-89) and San Miguel Beer (109-96).

“It was a good experience for the team and this will help us in the long run,” said Toroman, whose team departs on Thursday for a Middle East tour to be capped by its participation in the prestigious 21st Dubai Invitational Basketball Tournament slated from January 14 to 23.

Toroman’s team will play the best clubs in the Gulf and will face its former player CJ Giles, who is in the lineup of a Lebanese commercial team. Giles was scrapped in theSmart Gilas roster because of attitude problem.

Before the Dubai joust, Smart Gilas will also play friendlies with the national teams of Qatar and Kuwait on January 8 and 12, respectively.

Nino Canaleta and Romel Adducul each had 11 markers for Purefoods, which took advantage of the absence of American reinforcement Jamal Sampson, who sat out the game because of a back injury.

Behind Kerby Raymundo’s six points in the first period, the Giants jumped the gun on the national team and took a 32-18 advantage after the first 12 minutes.

Adducul unloaded nine of his total output in the second canto, as Purefoods extended its advantage to 54-38.

Roger Yap then took charge in the third as he poured half of his output in that stage to erect a 74-57 cushion. The Giants never threatened since then.

Skipper Chris Tiu led Smart Gilas with 18 points, while Japeth Aguilar added 12. Mark Barroca chipped in 11 points, while Dylan Ababou and Mac Baracael each had 10 points for the national team.

Games January 6 (Araneta Coliseum)
1st game — Purefoods def. Smart-Gilas, 99-81
2nd game — Sta. Lucia def. Rain or Shine, 95-91
3rd game — Ginebra def. Talk N' Text, 105-82

Ginebra puts ‘Spark’ back in active duty

2010-01-05T22:28:00.001-08:00

source: Musong R. Castillo | sports.inquirer.net

There will be a fearsome figure joining Barangay Ginebra Wednesday night—at least during the round robin.

Gunslinger Mark Caguioa has been reactivated by the Gin Kings in time for their crucial clash with Talk ‘N Text, but coach Jong Uichico said he does not see his superstar swingman actually playing even as the jockeying for outright spots in the KFC PBA Philippine Cup playoffs intensifies at the Araneta Coliseum.

“We would want to find opportunities for him to get some minutes,” Uichico told the Inquirer over the phone after the Kings informed league offices that it has placed Doug Kramer on the injured list to activate Caguioa.

“If those opportunities arise, then he will play,” Uichico added. “If they don’t, no problem.”

Caguioa’s mere presence, though, could fire up the Gin Kings and the Barangay Ginebral faithful.

The “Spark” saw action in the first two games of the Kings before hurting his left knee. He was out of commission for close to three months but started practicing before the holidays.

Ginebra is at 9-6 (win-loss) and trails the Texters by half a game for third spot. The Kings have three games left in their schedule and need to win at least two to assure themselves of advancing to the quarterfinals outright.

For the Texters, a win Wednesday night will enable them to keep their slim outright semifinal hopes alive as they trail second-running San Miguel by a full two games with also three assignments left in their schedule.

Meanwhile, Sta. Lucia starts its uphill climb to the quarterfinals when the Realtors battle Rain or Shine in the 5 p.m. contest.

The Realtors are at 7-6, and a sweep could even make them a contender for an automatic place in the Final Four if everything goes awry for the league-leading Alaska Aces and San Miguel.

Ronald Tubid will continue to be the focal point of the Ginebra offense as the team continues to await the full recovery of Caguioa and the return of reigning MVP Jayjay Helterbrand and Junthy Valenzuela—two more Kings on the injured list.

Mac Cardona, the league’s leading scorer, Jimmy Alapag and Ranidel de Ocampo will be the main men for the Texters.

Games January 6 (Araneta Coliseum)
2:30PM — Smart-Gilas vs Purefoods
5:00PM — Sta. Lucia vs Rain or Shine
7:30PM — Talk ’N Text vs Ginebra

Caguioa, Helterbrand won’t join team until they’re 100% healthy-Uichico

2010-01-05T22:27:00.001-08:00

source: sports.inquirer.net

Mark Caguioa and Jay-Jay Helterbrand, Barangay Ginebra’s Fast and the Furious combination, are already doing some scrimmages and drills in team practices even during the just concluded holidays.

But after a talk with coach Jong Uichico, don’t expect either of them to be suiting up soon.

“For me, it’s 100% (healthy) or nothing,” Uichico told the Inquirer over the phone yesterday when asked of the progress of his two injured superstars, undoubtedly the heart and soul of the Gin Kings who have played less than seven games combined in the KFC Philippine Cup.

“We will not have them play unless we are very sure that everything is OK as far as their knees are concerned,” Uichico added. “Look at what happened to Mark. We let him play (at the start of the season) and then after two games, he’s in the injured list again.”

Uichico said that the two, and even Junthy Valenzuela, another injured swingman, have started joining practices and are all being asked to play in scrimmages and participating in drills.

“But in limited stints only,” Uichico bared. “We don’t want to over-extend them in practice.”

The soft-spoken coach could not come up with an answer when pressed to give a timeframe on the duo’s return, though he said that he hopes that it would be in this conference, or in time for the playoffs at least.

Right now, the Kings are at 9-6, tied for fourth spot with sister squad Purefoods.

And Uichico’s primary aim at this point is to keep the team within automatic playoff range, even if his Ginebra side has been walking wounded for most of the elimination round of the season-opening tournament.

Ginebra battles defending champion Talk ‘N Text in a crucial game when action resumes tomorrow after a 12-day break even as Sta. Lucia tries to creep back into outright quarterfinal slot contention in the other game against Rain or Shine at the Araneta Coliseum.

“Right now, our main focus is to win at least two of our last three (elimination round) games just to assure ourselves of a quarterfinal seat,” Uichico said. “We’ve been very blessed at the way the team has performed, considering the personalities that are absent.” /Inquirer (Cebu Daily News)

UPDATE: Ginebra puts ‘Spark’ back in active duty (click here)

Games January 6 (Araneta Coliseum)
2:30PM — Smart-Gilas vs Purefoods
5:00PM — Sta. Lucia vs Rain or Shine
7:30PM — Talk ’N Text vs Ginebra

Ginebra, Talk ’N Text collide

2010-01-05T22:25:00.001-08:00

Defending champion Talk ’N Text collides with crowd-favorite Ginebra San Miguel Wednesday as the two ball clubs press their bids for one of two outright semifinals berths in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Tropang Texters and the Kings clash at 7:30 p.m., right after the 5 p.m. encounter between Sta. Lucia Realty and Rain or Shine.

Purefoods, on the other hand, takes on the Smart-Gilas national team in an exhibition game at 2:30 p.m. This will be the last stint by the Nationals as a guest team in the PBA in preparation for various tournaments like the Asian Games this December in Guangzhou, China and the FIBA-Asia Championship next year, the qualifying event for the 2012 London Olympics.

Both Ginebra and TNT are coming off big wins to end year 2009.

The Texters downed the Realtors, 117-112, last Dec. 23 to improve their record to 10-5 behind the Alaska Aces (11-2) and San Miguel Beer (12-3) while the Kings beat the Coca-Cola Tigers, 106-97, on Christmas Day.

Ginebra’s win forced a two-way tie for fourth place with Purefoods at 9-6, followed by Sta. Lucia with a 7-6 card.

The Realtors have still a legitimate shot for one of two automatic berths, but to do so, they have to win their remaining five games, including against the Elasto Painters, who have been emboldened by their 88-72 win over Barako Bull last Dec. 23.

The third to fifth finishers after the classification phase will move to the quarterfinals automatically with the sixth to ninth placers playing in a crossover knockout wildcard phase. The last finisher after the classification round will be eliminated from the playoffs.

In their first round meeting, TNT scored a convincing 87-72 victory as Ginebra played without injured superstars Jayjay Helterbrand – the reigning Most Valuable Player – and Mark Caguioa.

Helterbrand and Caguioa, both nursing knee injuries, won’t play anew for the most popular squad in the league.

But even without the dynamic duo, TNT mentor Chot Reyes considers Ginebra a tough assignment with the likes of Ronald Tubid, Cyrus Baguio, JC Intal and even the comebacking Johnny Abarrientos expected to step up.

“After two weeks off, we couldn’t ask for a bigger game to stat the New Year,” Reyes said. “We can’t wait to play again, and I’m sure, they’re just as eager.”

Reyes said that though veteran playmaker Jimmy Alapag and sophomore wingman Jared Dillinger were hampered by injuries last month, the two will be ready to play against the Kings although not in full strength.

As for the Sta. Lucia-Rain or Shine game, the Realtors will try to rebound from that setback to the Texters as they eye a repeat against the Elasto Painters, whom they downed in overtime in the first round 95-90.

“We had three good practices, so now we have to translate it to the game. We need to start the year with a win to get our confidence back. We have to compete against SLR in order for us to win,” said coach Caloy Garcia.

Games January 6 (Araneta Coliseum)
2:30PM — Smart-Gilas vs Purefoods
5:00PM — Sta. Lucia vs Rain or Shine
7:30PM — Talk ’N Text vs Ginebra

PBA teams hope long break is beneficial

2010-01-04T16:30:00.001-08:00

source: Waylon Galvez | mb.com.ph

Despite the long lay-off, PBA coaches are not worried of the so-called “holiday rust,” believing their boys can dish out their usual performances much more now that the Philippine Cup is now entering its crucial stage.

“I don’t think the break is going to have that much effect because we actually had practice until the 31st (of December). But of course, actual game and practices are different,” coach Siot Tanquincen of San Miguel Beer said Monday.

“Likewise, every team had this break so no team actually has an advantage over the other.” Tanquincen added.

Alaska leads the field with an 11-2 record, followed by San Miguel’s 12-3, defending champion Talk ’N Text’s 10-5, while Purefoods TJ Hotdogs and Barangay Ginebra share fourth to fifth places with similar 9-6 records.

Sta. Lucia Realty sports a 7-6 slate, followed by Burger King (5-10), Rain or Shine (4-10), Coca-Cola (3-12) and Barako Bull (2-12).

The top two teams after the classification phase will earn outright Final Four berths, while the third to fifth teams will advance to the quarterfinals automatically. The sixth to ninth teams will figure in a knockout wildcard round for the last quarterfinal slot.

The 10th and last finisher will be eliminated automatically from the playoffs.

The last time the league held games was on December 25 with Purefoods winning over Burger King (85-74) and Ginebra beating Coca-Cola (106-97).

“The players looked re-energized and rejuvenated. We needed the long break to rest the aching bodies and give time for the injured players to recuperate,” said Purefoods coach Ryan Gregorio, adding that the players who benefited from the rest are injured stars James Yap (back), Kerby Raymundo (knee) and PJ Simon (MCL).

“I don’t think the long lay-off will be an issue since we all worked hard to remain sharp to maintain our goal of landing in the top four after the eliminations,” he added.

The Giants will resume play tomorrow when they face the Smart-Gilas national team in an exhibition game at 2:30 p.m. at the Araneta Coliseum.

Likewise, regular games will also return as Sta. Lucia meets Rain or Shine at 5 p.m., while TNT battles Ginebra at 7:30 p.m. in what should be an exciting match as both teams are still in the fight for the two outright seats in the semis.

“We only had a total of three days break after our 25th game. Of course there will always be that ‘kalawang’ as they say but hopefully we can get rid of it right away,” Ginebra’s Jong Uichico said.

“Break shouldn’t be an issue,” coach Chot Reyes of TNT said.

Latest PBA trade:
Burger King, Coke trade players

Games January 6 (Araneta Coliseum)
2:30PM — Smart-Gilas vs Purefoods
5:00PM — Sta. Lucia vs Rain or Shine
7:30PM — Talk ’N Text vs Ginebra