Very fine.
Mark Caguioa played one of his best all-around games in the conference, Willy Wilson came off the bench to contribute 12 points and 7 rebounds, and Ronald Tubid hit two free throws with 14.1 seconds left and Ginebra once more conquered an enemy sans an import, beating sister-team B-Meg this time, 89-85, in the PBA Governors’ Cup Sunday night at the Araneta Coliseum.
The Kings clawed their way back from a 12-point deficit (41-29) – a huge one judging from the game’s standards – and then showcased rock-solid poise down the stretch to secure their second win in a row without Curtis Stinson and create a three-way tie at second spot (4-2, win-loss) with Talk ‘N Text and Rain or Shine.
Caguioa finished with 19 points, 6 assists and five rebounds. He was the one who knocked in Ginebra’s last field goal – a tear-drop shot on a fastbreak play — to push the Kings ahead 87-83 before a spate of misfires and turnovers from both teams ensued.
Ginebra only heaved a sigh of relief when PJ Simon bungled a difficult three-point shot at the right corner as B-Meg dropped its fourth game in seven outings and now faces a tough task of making it to the semifinals.
“The guys have confidence playing all-Filipino,” said Ginebra coach Jong Uichico. “We didn’t expect this, we just tried to stay as close as possible. The breaks went our way in the end. Mahirap ang walang import. Doble kayod kami.”
From the looks of it, the Kings might be better off staying all-Filipino.
They have one coming in – Donald Sloan. Sloan is a veteran of the NBA D-League who was part of the starting unit of the Reno Bighorns, the team that won the Western Conference championship for the 2010-11 season.
“We have a good idea of how he plays, but we don’t know yet how we will put him into our system,” Uichico said. “It’s a gamble, yes, pero mas maganda na rin na may import.’
Tubid wound up with 20 points on 6-of-9 shooting from three-point country. His free throws late in the game were the only points that didn’t come from beyond the arc, while Erik Menk added 14 points and Billy Mamaril 11 for Ginebra, which now takes a near one-week break before it plunges back into action on Saturday against Alaska.
With the win, the Kings are now in a perfect spot to corner a spot in the semifinals, a berth Ginebra’s sister team, Petron, had already clinched Saturday.
The stunning development, though, is B-Meg’s fall in the standings.
The Llamados only have two games left before they wind up their elimination round campaign.
Darnell Hinson rebounded from a five-point effort to score 21 points this time, while two-time MVP James Yap and Simon each added 14 points.
In results Saturday, Petron became the first ball club to make it to the carry-over, single-round semifinals, beating Talk ‘N Text, 101-96 even without an import while Rain or Shine recorded a classic 113-110 victory over Meralco in overtime.
Alex Cabagnot had 14 points and a career-high tying13 assists, the last on Mick Pennisi for the game-clinching three-point shot, Sunday Salvacion scored 23 points built around on four triples while Arwind Santos collected 25 points and 14 rebounds, his fourth straight double-double and sixth in Petron’s last seven games.
Petron thus claimed its third win in a row since a 113-83 blowout loss to Rain or Shine, assured of a spot in the next round the franchise failed to accomplish in the Commissioner’s Cup.
“Defense and execution won it for us,” said Boosters coach Ato Agustin. “We prepared hard for their running game and we played physical.” The win was even sweeter for Petron since the ball club saw action without its scoring sensation reinforcement, Jeremy Wise.
Wise suffered a meniscus tear (right knee) and has been declared by Agustin as out for the remainder of the tournament.
The night, however, didn’t belong to Petron by itself.
In a match that will go down as one of the most epics in PBA history, Rain or Shine lost a 20-point lead and then miraculously fought back from six points down in the final 15 seconds of regulation to frustrate the Bolts in extra time.
Larry Rodriguez hit a three-point shot to force overtime, and the Elasto Painters took it from there in gathering their energy and confidence back to move to within a victory of clinching a slot in the next round.
“There won’t be too many games like this,” said Painters’ coach Yeng Guiao. “This is a big win for us. We just couldn’t get the breaks from the refs so we had to make our own breaks.”
