MANILA, 12 July 2007 — Derrick Pumaren asked his players to come around in the next 24 minutes.
As it turned out, the Talk ‘N Text Phone Pals didn’t need that much time.
The Phone Pals, down by 23 in the second quarter and by 16 at the half, came charging back with reckless abandon in the final two periods last night to post a 95-87 victory over Alaska and grab a 2-1 lead in their PBA Fiesta Cup title series.
“I challenged all of them in the locker room (during the halftime break) because I was so pissed at the way they played (the first half),” Pumaren narrated.
“I told them that they had (the next) 24 minutes to turn things around.”
JJ Sullinger led a crazy uprising in the third period, not only scoring 12 of his 30 points in that span but also limiting Best Import awardee Rosell Ellis to just three points in the second half.
And that was the key as Sullinger put the Phone Pals back in the hunt, with Cardona joining the fray in the fourth that finished off the game Aces, who never really knew what hit them.
From 20-43 down early in the second period, the Phone Pals steadily clawed their way back, ending the third quarter just a solitary point down before turning up the heat some more in the fourth to befuddle the Aces.
It was the second straight win in the series for the Phone Pals, who got 20 points from Cardona in what turned out to be his valedictory speech after winning the Player of the Conference award earlier.
“I’m proud with the way they responded to the challenge. We’re an underrated team defensively. But we pushed them (Alaska) from what they are used to doing,” Pumaren, seeking his first title in more than a decade, added.
“It’s tough to beat Alaska when they’re ahead.”
A teardrop shot by Cardona inside the paint gave the Phone Pals the lead for good at 75-74, with 6:03 to go and that would spark a string of six unanswered points which Talk ‘N Text smartly preserved.
The last time Alaska threatened was when Willie Miller scored on a jumper, 81-83, with 2:51 left. But two free throws by Cardona ignited a decisive 12-4 run that sealed the win.
The Aces, hoping to win their 12th title overall and first since the 2000 All-Filipino Cup, were led by Miller’s season high of 29 points.
Cardona’s performance justified, in great deal, the individual award he won in simple rites earlier, where he shared the limelight with the silently-effective Ellis.
“I think I am deserving of the award,” Cardona, who totaled 1,488 points in winning the statistical points race, the media, ABC-5 and PBA votes, told scribes in Filipino.
“I played well during the eliminations and the semifinals.”
Ellis, another unorthodox player, won the Best Import plum over JJ Sullinger with a margin of 1,385-997.
The injured Gary David of Air21, James Yap of Purefoods and hands-down Rookie of the Year winner Kelly Williams of Sta. Lucia were the other candidates for the award. They finished third to fifth, respectively.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Team hits the final phase of its Fiba-Asia preparations starting today with the holding of the four-nation Manila Invitational at The Arena in San Juan.
China, Syria and Lebanon are the other teams entered as coach Chot Reyes will also use the event to determine his final lineup that will see action in the Olympic qualifier in Tokushima, Japan.
The Philippines is bracketed with China, Jordan and Iran in Japan and the Nationals would need to win at least two games to make the quarterfinal round and have a realistic chance of making the Beijing Summer Games next year.
