MANILA, 17 March 2007 — Jay-Jay Helterbrand watched his mother ballclub play for the first time in the PBA Fiesta Cup and saw an old master at the point work.
Johnny Abarrientos held the Gin Kings together and nailed a key triple in the stretch last night to lift Ginebra to a breakthrough 99-97 decision of the newcomer Welcoat Dragons at the Araneta Coliseum.
With the National team appointee Helterbrand relegated to a spectator, his Ginebra reliever Abarrientos showed everyone that the Kings are still in an able quarterback’s hands.
The 5-foot-8 former MVP, who helped Alaska complete a Grand Slam in 1996, tossed in seven points, hauled down five rebounds, issued nine assists and had two steals in a 33-minute performance that helped the Kings pound out the win.
Earlier, Sta. Lucia also won its first game in the tournament, and in convincing manner at that, after the Realtors broke the game wide open in the third quarter for a 102-87 victory over Purefoods.
Kelly Williams posted super rookie numbers yet again, shooting 21 points, ripping off 14 boards and dishing off six feeds in leading the Realtors to their first win in three outings.
Purefoods, severely depleted by a contribution to the National team and injuries to big men Marc Pingris and Jun Limpot, took a third straight loss flush on the chin to be at the bottom of the 10-team pack.
Ginebra was under seige all game, and Abarrientos stood at the forefront in keeping the Kings’ collective heads above water, playing the point with so much class to make his teammates look good.
Import Rod Nealy actually scored five straight points that gave the Kings a 96-89 lead with only 2:14 to go, and it looked at that point that the Dragons were goners until birthday boy Alex Compton hit a triple with 1:57 left for 96-92.
With the shotclock winding down, Abarrientos then nailed a three-pointer off his own off the outstretched hands of Compton, and the Kings’ seven-point lead proved enough to hold off the Dragons until the buzzer.
It was not that Welcoat did not have a chance, but Charles Clark, who paced Welcoat with 26 markers, missed a turnaround at the buzzer badly.
“This is more of a relief than anything else,” Ginebra coach Jong Uichico later said. “We still have a long ways to go. The only good thing about this (win) is that we found one way to win.
“For us, this entire tournament will be about finding those ways in which we could win, finding ways to get back into playing in the championship again.”
Ronald Tubid tossed in 18 points for the Kings, who also got 14 from Sunday Salvacion and 10 points and 11 rebounds from workhorse Rudy Hatfield.
Compton, who turned 33 yesterday, scored 19 of his 21 points in the final two periods, his 14 fourth quarter points almost succeeding in turning the game around for the Dragons, who trailed, 63-77, entering the final 12 minutes.
The depleted Tender Juicy Giants got 34 points from James Yap but only four from import Jesse King, who could have seen action in his final game with Purefoods. King was utilized for only 24 minutes and turned in a woeful 2-of-18 from the field.
Marquin Chandler, the winner of the Best Import award last year, is waiting in the wings and could be healthy enough to suit up in Purefoods’ next game, which will be against Coca-Cola on Wednesday.
“I’m happy that I finally got the monkey off my back,” rookie Sta. Lucia coach Boyet Fernandez said. “Even after two losses, I wasn’t ready to push the panic button because I knew that we would somehow adapt to the system.”
The Realtors, hands-down the heavy favorites in the tournament after their roster was left untouched by the National team, came off losses to Air21 and Welcoat but played with a lot of poise and confidence.
Sta. Lucia, though, could lose Williams to the National team in the next few days after speculations have started popping up that Chot Reyes will name the 6-foot-7 Fil-American as Hatfield’s replacement.
“Frankly speaking, I’m happy for Kelly,” Fernandez said. “He deserves to be in the National team and I won’t be a hinder for him in getting the honor to play for the country. Di ko pipigilan yan.”
Meanwhile, the elimination round plays its first provincial game today with Coca-Cola looking to bounce back and San Miguel seeking a first win at each other’s expense in Lanao del Norte.
Game is set for 6 p.m. at the Mindanao Civic Center with the Tigers seeking to rebound from a good beating they took at the hands of Talk ‘N Text and the Beermen parading a new import in Paul McMillan.
