MANILA, 13 November 2006 — Derrick Pumaren did not have much to say to his Talk ‘N Text Phone Pals in trying to motivate them to come with their game faces on against Barangay Ginebra.

Nothing much was said, other than the fact that his team was an embarrassing sight the last time up.

“Definitely, it was an embarrassing loss, that’s what I told them,” Pumaren recounted, shortly after his Phone Pals played true to their form and walloped the Gin Kings, 113-98, to get back on track in the eliminations of the PBA Philippine Cup.

Mark Cardona, the sophomore swingman out of La Salle, tossed in 15 points in the opening period and went on to finish with a career-high 30 points to lead the Phone Pals to an even 5-5 record.

Not only did the win put the team back in the mix, but it also gave the Phone Pals some measure of respect back in themselves, especially after losing to newcomer Welcoat, 72-79, in an out-of-town sortie in Lanao Del Sur last week.

Caguioa hit all but one of his seven attempts in the first period, and Talk ‘N Text raced to a 31-18 lead that was never threatened the rest of the way as a record crowd of more than 17,000 that mostly rooted for the Kings went home disappointed.

Not because of the loss, but because the Kings were a far cry from the one that beat sister team San Miguel just two nights ago.

Ginebra, which opened up the season with three straight wins but has since gone on an up-and-down ride, dropped to 6-4, well out of the pace being set by the streaking Sta. Lucia Realtors, who are currently toting a 7-2 card.

The Phone Pals shot 56% from the floor in the first half to take a commanding 59-43 cushion into the third quarter even as the the Kings were horrendous by making just 34%.

Talk ‘N Text made it a truly ugly game by leading, 90-64 at the end of the third period.

Eric Menk scattered 29 points and Mark Caguioa had 21, but zilch in the fourth period.

Purefoods, meanwhile, slayed the fire-breathing Dragons earlier, but not before sitting on pins and needles in an 86-84 victory in the first game.

James Yap, the reigning Most Valuable Player, bailed the defending champion Chunkee Giants out of the woods with a clutch performance from the free throw line as Purefoods climbed into a tie with the Gin Kings for third spot.

Yap hit four free throws in the final 50 seconds, snuffing the fight out of the Dragons who fought the Giants on even terms throughout and looked poised to toppling a top-seeded team for the second straight night.

Still, Welcoat dropped to 3-7, just a win ahead of the cellar-dwelling Alaska Aces.

Tournament format calls for all but one of the 10 teams to advance past the eliminations, with the top two earning automatic semifinal slots, the next three quarterfinal berths and the bottom four advancing to the wild card phase.