MANILA, 14 June 2008 — Magnolia got back on the winning track, but not solely because of its new import.
Sta. Lucia continued to lose even though the Realtors got the import they needed.
Two new reinforcements who stirred the imagination because of their credentials debuted in respectable ways last night, but the Beverage Masters got a lift from a lightly-regarded local for an 80-74 victory over the Realtors in the PBA Fiesta Cup eliminations.
Jonas Villanueva, a tall point guard out of collegiate power Far Eastern University, scored 12 points in the most crucial times to help key the win, the Beverage Masters’ eighth in 15 games as Magnolia stayed alive in the automatic Final Four race.
Amal McCaskill did his part as Magnolia’s new import, shooting 15 points and grabbing 16 rebounds as the Beverage Masters spoiled the debut of the ex-convict Lee Benson, who couldn’t carry the fight by himself for the Realtors.
Sta. Lucia, aside from being held to a tie of its season-low output, lost for the fourth straight time and dropped to 6-8, and saw its aspirations of an outright Final Four appearance in back-to-back conferences suffer a major blow.
Villanueva made 4-of-6 attempts from the field, shooting those 12 points in just 19 minutes on the floor, a break he got with Mike Cortez, Magnolia’s starting point guard, out because of a stiff back.
“It just goes to show how talented he is,” Magnolia coach Siot Tanquingcen later said. “He will have his time in this team, and in this league. And right now, he knows his role to the letter. “And I think that is what makes him such a very special player.”
Benson, who was a legitimate National Basketball Association prospect in high school but who lost the chance to jump to the majors after serving eight years of jail time because of drug trafficking, had 19 points and 17 rebounds in his first game on RP soil.
But he got very little help from a local crew that has been struggling of late, as only Kelly Williams and Nelbert Omolon turned in twin digit scores.
Williams, who won top rookie honors last year and was adjudged the Best Player of the Philippine Cup, missed Sta. Lucia’s last game by flying to the United States to marry his long time beau. He scored 14 points last night.
The Realtors trailed by as many as 14 late in the third period, 60-46 and were never really able to make a dent on Magnolia the rest of the way as the Beverage Masters celebrated the return of Dondon Hontiveros on a bright note.
Hontiveros scattered 14 points and Danny Seigle showed that he is nearing peak form by tossing in 11.
Air21 got massacred the first time it clashed with Talk ‘N Text close to two months ago, when the Phone Pals set a new league record 23 three-pointers to eke out a 116-99 decision.
Last night, the Express needed just one free throw to erase the stigma of their most lopsided loss in the tournament.
Gary David nailed the marginal charity in a 112-111 nipping of the Phone Pals in the second game, going on to finish with 25 points in his most impressive offensive game since staging a comeback from an ACL injury.
David scored 13 of his total in the fourth period, including that all-important free throw with just 1.5 seconds left that broke the game’s last tie which Air21 import Steven Thomas forged with a follow up in the final 15.2.
Before improving to 9-6 overall and solo third place behind joint leaders Red Bull and Coca-Cola, the Express actually had to battle back from 10 points down in the second and third periods and from four behind with 56.6 seconds remaining.
