MANILA: Alaska’s return semifinal matchup with Sta. Lucia has taken a totally different complexion after just two games.
Only thing left to be determined at this point is if the ending will be different.
The Aces broke away in the second half for the second straight night Friday, resulting in a 94-87 victory over the Realtors and a commanding 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven Final Four series in the Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.
Sta. Lucia won this tournament last year, beating Purefoods in an epic seven-game series.
What has been left unnoticed of late was how the Realtors got to the finals, where they came back from a 0-1 deficit to win in seven games in a series that was full of color — from the players on the court to those calling the shots.
“Last time we played Sta. Lucia, they came back so strong (after a Game 1 loss) and really beat us up with some hard plays,” Alaska coach Tim Cone told reporters later. “We didn’t know how to handle that (last year).
But even with such a huge lead, Cone refused to fall into the complacency that has befell so many teams against Sta. Lucia in the past.
“Believe it or not, we have to follow this (win) up again,” Cone said. “We want to continue the momentum. Sta. Lucia is the defending champion and no one can be champion unless they are beaten.”
Willie Miller, a winner of two MVP awards with two different teams, sparked a second half awakening by the Aces, shooting nine of his 17 points in the third quarter where Alaska finally erased a five-point halftime deficit.
He shared team honors with Joe Devance as they hit big shot after big shot, especially late in the fourth period when the Realtors tried to make one final run at turning things around.
Dennis Espino led Sta. Lucia with 20 points and Joseph Yeo added 19, including eight in the final frame.
But the firepower that Alaska packed in the second half, plus the defense that the Aces played, simply proved too much for the Realtors, who were held to just 36 points in the final two periods.
“That’s what we want to do — shut them down during the most crucial times,” Cone said as his Aces limited reigning MVP Kelly Williams to just six points and Espino and Yep to eight apiece in the final two periods.
While the Aces grabbed control of their series, the other semifinal match-up now hangs in the balance after San Miguel scored a 112-103 victory over Talk ’N Text that leveled their separate series at 1-1.
Taking the floor with more focus and a lot more intensity, the Beermen avenged a series-opening loss with aplomb after Dondon Hontiveros and Danny Seigle came up with 23 points each to lead a balanced scoring by San Miguel.
Coach Siot Tanquingcen bared that he didn’t make any significant adjustments in their game plan and only tinkered with the outlook of his players that enabled them to erase the stigma of a 29-point Game 1 loss.
“We came out really flat last time, it was like we were playing with a really bad hang over,” said Tanquingcen. “Tonight, we were more aggressive and that dictated the tempo of the game.”
Tanquingcen, though, refused to see the win more than what it actually was: A series-tying victory.
“I still expect a tough series,” he said. “Talk ’N Text remains a very tough team and you can never say what’s going to happen in the next game. They struggled tonight and yet the result was still close.”
Ranidel de Ocampo had 19 points and 10 rebounds for his 10th double-double while three other Talk ‘N Text players chipped in 10 points each.
But what aided the Texters’ downfall was that they failed to draw the usual numbers from Mac Cardona, who was error-prone the entire night and was utilized only for 20 minutes.
The leading Best Player of the Conference candidate scored only eight points and was taken out for good with still 4:15 left. His scoring total was his second fewest for the year. Cardona also committed seven turnovers.
