MANILA, 18 November 2006 — Ryan Gregorio believes that his Purefoods squad is getting better physically.
A strong character doubled with that is making him talk with a lot more confidence.
“Again, it was a character game for us,” Gregorio said, moments after his Chunkee Giants held on to post a 102-97 decision of upset-conscious Air21 for solo second place in the eliminations of the PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum last night.
“We like the situation where we are right now,” Gregorio, winner of two titles, added. “We’re getting better, physically, every game and our poise and character are holdinng out. In this league, the team with composure and poise almost always wins.” The defending champion Giants lost a 16-point lead early in the fourth period, but hung tough by making the shots when they needed to and stopping Air21 in crucial stretches for their third straight win in a 7-4 card. It was actually the sixth victory in the last seven games for the Giants, who opened up with a 1-3 card because of championship hangover and poor conditioning.
The loss put the Express in the company of Welcoat in the cellar at 3-8.
Air21 battled like crazy after falling behind, 67-83 when a 9-0 Purefoods run opened up the fourth frame. The Express tied the game twice, the first at 93 after a Yancy De Ocampo basket with 1:31 left and then at 95 after two Gary David free throws with 56.4 to go.
But Marc Pingris completed a three-point play off Ranidel de Ocampo in the next play, just six seconds later, and James Yap added two more from the stripe that sandwiched two Ranidel de Ocampo free throws for a 100-97 count with just over 16 seconds left. Air21 still had a chance to equalize, but David, who scored 10 of his 24 points in the fourth period, lost possession because of a Purefoods double team in the backcourt that led to a Rey Evangelista split on the other end.
Kerby Raymundo topscored for the Giants with 22 points, while also pulling down nine rebounds. Roger Yap added 16 and Peter June Simon chipped in with 14. James Yap accounted for 12, while Pingris finished with 10 points and eight boards before fouling out.
Alaska checked a collapse In time before going on to outsteady Welcoat in the first game, 97-91, in overtime. The Aces opened up with eight unanswered points in extension to win for only the third time in 10 games, thus climbing out of the cellar since languishing there after losing a tournament-worst five straight games.
Welcoat is now in that position at 3-8, but not after erasing a 20-point deficit and forging extension at 86 after a Denver Lopez triple with 1.3 seconds remaining.
“It’s tough to close out a team if you don’t have the confidence,” Alaska coach Tim Cone said later. “We just hope that we can carry this (momentum of win) over to the next one (game). “This is something we need to build on,” he added. “But when you are 2-7 (before the game), it’s hard to be a confident team out there.” The Aces looked headed to winning easy in regulation, until a spate of five missed free throws — three by Willie Miller — inside the final three minutes almost gave Welcoat the win on a silver platter. A former winner of the MVP award, Miller, who has taken over leadership chores with Mike Cortez out for the season because of a knee injury, finished with 19 points and rescued a good game for himself by burying a three-pointer with 2:49 left for a 91-86 lead.
And when the Dragons still couldn’t buy a bucket, Dale Singson followup that up with a triple of his own for a 94-86 lead with just under two minutes left.
Still, the Dragons refused to just fold up, as Jun Jun Cabatu hit a trey, and Jay-R Reyes scored on a layup that made it 91-94 with still 1:25 left, before Welcoat self-destructed with misses in its next two possessions.
