MANILA, 25 April 2004 — The Kings finally put a stop to their six-game losing skein on Friday night, dumping Alaska Milk, 109-94, in a Gran Matador PBA Fiesta Conference road game at the Puerto Princesa Coliseum in Palawan.
The Kings, whose string of losses started in Allan Caidic’s farewell match as a coach, are now 4-7 (win-loss) overall. The loss dropped Alaska’s ledger to 7-4.
Mark Caguioa provided the spark to hand Tanquincen his first victory as Ginebra coach.
The heavily favored Aces didn’t play badly, but they just had to answer on this night to a Ginebra team that played with the same kind of relentless intensity that endeared it to fans in the nineties.
Caguioa banged in 24 points to lead the scoring, but it was the hustle plays of Bal David and Rodney Santos and the blue-collar work Eric Menk, Torraye Braggs and Andy Seigle did off the boards that set the tone for the rout.
Ginebra opened a 55-43 lead at halftime and led by as many as 21 points in the third quarter. Alaska pulled within 71-60, 1:41 left in the quarter, but from thereon it was an all-Ginebra show.
Tanquincen finally had the Gin Kings playing the way he wanted them to play-executing well on offense, and working hard on defense.
Tanquincen lost his first five games as Ginebra coach almost tying previous coach Allan Caidic’s record who started his stint with Ginebra with 7 straight losses.
Menk detonated 16 points in the first half alone. Caguioa had 14 points while import Torraye Braggs had 6 points at the half but collared 11 rebounds.
Braggs Yeoman’s job allowed the Gin Kings to out-rebound the Alaska Aces 31-11 in the first half. Ginebra then continued its assault in the second half. A 15-4 run by Ginebra in the first 5 minutes of the third quarter, anchored again by Menk, gave the Gin Kings a fat 21-point lead in the third period, 68-47.
The closest the Aces got was when Rob Duat drilled a trey to push the Aces within 11 points of the Ginebra lead, 71-60. But the Gin Kings ended the quarter with a 6-0 run to hike their lead to 17 points, 77-60, after the pivotal third quarter. With 2:37 remaining, Alaska coach Tim Cone pulled out his main men and sent in the second-stringers, virtually throwing in the towel.
