Fired-up Giants upset Barakos - April 22, 2007

Fired-up Giants upset Barakos

By JAY R. GOTERA

MANILA

PUREFOODS demolished Red Bull 103-89 Sunday night at the Araneta Coliseum to pull off the biggest upset so far in this year’s PBA Fiesta Conference.

The Giants won despite the ejection of Marquin Chandler with a minute left before the end of the first half. In a span of 45 seconds, Chandler was whistled for two technical fouls, meriting an automatic ejection, as the Barakos ganged up on the Purefoods import.

But Chandler’s ejection only fired up the Giants, led by sweet-shooting James Yap who recorded a season-high 36 points.

Purefoods’ other players also stepped up as they engaged Red Bull in a bruising battle. Bench players like Peter Jun Simon, Don Camaso and Jondan Salvador contributed mightily in both offense and defense as the Barakos crumbled down in the face of a relentless Giants’ assault.

Red Bull tumbled to second place after suffering only its third defeat against 8 wins, allowing idle Barangay Ginebra to take the solo lead in the standings at 8-2.

The victory was just the fourth for Purefoods against seven losses as it stayed at sixth place.

Red Bull defeated Purefoods in the first round 98-88 last March 4.

In the first game, Air21 exacted vengeance on Welcoat, beating the Dragons 102-94 despite a 38-point effort by Alex Compton.

The Air21 Express lost a 103-99 overtime decision in both teams’ first meeting last March 30.

“Our mentality going into the game was to get back at Welcoat. But it was one of those nights when the goal was like a hula-hoop for Alex,” said Air21 coach Bo Perasol, so thankful that Compton missed some crucial shots in the closing minutes.

It was the second straight win for the Express, who tied the Alaska Aces in third place in the team standings with their identical 7-3 records.

Shawn Daniels recorded his second triple double in the conference of 17 points, 22 rebounds and 11 assists to lead Air21 while Mark Telan scored 22 points and had 11 rebounds and Santos added 21, including two free throws with 18 seconds remaining to give the Express a comfortable 99-94 lead.

The Express pounced on the Dragons off the boards, 61-42 and their domination of the boards also earned them a 22-13 edge off the offensive boards and 23 second chance points.

Air21 also capitalized on Welcoat’s 16 turnovers that netted them another 23 points.

The 33-year-old Compton, playing with the zest and passion of a 22-year old, went 7-of-11 from the 3-point range, 6-of-12 from the perimeter and 5-for-5 from the free throw line.

By halftime he had already 25 points, including 6-of-7 from downtown to keep the Dragons within 48-54 at the break.

“I would rather score two points or zero points and win,” said Compton, the team’s assistant coach who is playing in the conference as an import.

“Getting into the playoffs is very valuable for me. I am given only the opportunity to play this conference, that’s why I want to play longer,” he added.

Welcoat picked up its eighth loss in 10 games and was foiled anew in its attempt to duplicate its three wins in the previous Philippine Cup.

The scores:

Air21 102 – Telan 23, Santos 21, Daniels 17, Canaleta 11, David 10, Arboleda 8, Dimaunahan 4, Se 4, Andaya 2, Torion 2, Bernardo 0.

Welcoat 94 – Compton 38, Sanders 19, Lopez 12, Reyes 10, Wainwright 10, Cabatu 2, Sta. Maria 2, Ibanes 1, Baguion 0, Gelig 0, Lao 0.

Quarterscores: 21-23, 54-48, 78-73, 102-94.

San Miguel 78, Sta. Lucia 61

San Miguel Beer rode the momentum of its 96-90 win over Welcoat last Sunday as it walloped Sta. Lucia Realty, 78-61, Saturday night at the Tacloban Convention Center in Tacloban, Leyte.

Improving further on their third game with import Galen Young, the Beermen earned their third win in their last four outings and pulled abreast with the Realtors and the Purefoods Tender Juicy Giants at 3-7.

San Miguel finally got out of the cellar, leaving Welcoat alone at the bottom of the standings at 2-7.

Coach Siot Tangquincen and his troops are hoping to make a big charge in the second round of the eliminations to make it to the upper half of the chart for at least an outright seat in the quarterfinal round.

The team remains well on target with sixth-running Coca-Cola just a game ahead at 4-6 and No. 5 Talk n Text two games in front at 5-5.

Showing great determination, the Beermen started with a 12-2 run and dominated the hapless Realtors up to the final buzzer.

Air21 downs Yap-less Purefoods

By JAY R. GOTERA

MANILA

THE Air21 Express felled the Purefoods Giants, 102-89, Thursday night at The Arena in San Juan as the Express took advantage of the absence of ace gunner James Yap from the Purefoods lineup.

Yap could not join his ballclub as he was with his wife, actress and television host Kris Aquino, after she gave birth to their first child at the Makati Medical Center also on Thursday.

Defending slam-dunk champ KG Canaleta erupted for 30 points to lead Air21 to its sixth win in nine games.

The loss was the second straight for the Giants who were also beaten by the Barangay Ginebra Kings in Dubai last Friday. Purefoods absorbed its fifth loss in its last six games and slid to 3-7, just half-game in front of tailenders San Miguel Beer and Welcoat.

Shawn Daniels, Gary David and Wynne Arboleda also contributed mightily to the Express cause as they repeated over the Giants in a game marred by a near-fight between Purefoods’ Marquin Chandler and Air21 rookie Arwind Santos.

Emotions ran high after Chandler and Santos got entangled, causing Santos to crash to the floor. Chandler was called a personal foul while Santos and Purefoods’ Don Camaso were both assessed technical fouls in the aftermath of the near fight.

The Express whipped the Giants, 107-103, in their first meeting at the Cuneta Astrodome last March 23.

The scores:

Air21 102 – Canaleta 30, David 16, Daniels 15, Arboleda 11, Se 9, Santos 8, Torion 6, Telan 4, Dimaunahan 3.

Purefoods 89 – Chandler 26, Simon 19, Evangelista 12, Castrillo 10, Yee 8, Salvador 7, Yap 5, Camaso 2, Artadi 0, Gamboa 0.

Quarterscores: 28-15, 55-44, 79-64, 102-89.

Red Bull 100, Welcoat 71

The Red Bull Barakos made mincemeat of the Welcoat Dragons, 100-71, late Wednesday night at the Araneta Coliseum to regain solo leadership in the PBA Fiesta Conference.

The win was the eighth for the Barakos against two losses, keeping them half a game ahead of Barangay Ginebra and Alaska, both with a 7-2 card.

The loss sent the Dragons to the cellar in the company of San Miguel, both with a 2-7 card.

Red Bull import James Penny suffered a bruised left hand and sat out the last 20 minutes of the game after he crashed to the floor on a flagrant foul by Jay-R Reyes.

Enrico Villanueva exacted revenge for Penny later on, hacking Reyes on the head while the Welcoat rookie was going for a short stab.

The Barakos completely dominated the hapless Dragons, dealing them a third successive defeat.

Welcoat allowed Red Bull to pull away early with the Dragons shooting a paltry 28 percent from the field in the opening half.

Welcoat appeared to have a problem with its new import, Rob Sanders who was just 2-of-10 from the field and 2-of-2 from the stripe.

“Our import refused to play. He wouldn’t listen to his coach in the huddle,” lamented Welcoat co-team owner Terry Que.

Coach Leo Austria seemed to have had enough of Sanders that he decided to freeze him in the last nine minutes of the contest.

Sanders struggled for only 12 points and nine rebounds.

The scores:

Red Bull 100 – Valenzuela 19, Penny 14, Fonacier 13, Villanueva 10, Baguio 8, Sharma 7, Bugia 6, Hrabak 6, Robinson 5, Cruz 5, Alvarez 3, Najorda 2, Ybanez 2.

Welcoat 71 – Sta. Maria 13, Sanders 12, Cabatu 10, Reyes 9, Gelig 7, Wainwright 7, Lopez 5, Compton 3, Ibanes 3, Baguion 2, Lao 0.

Quarterscores: 25-15, 50-33, 80-48, 100-71.

RP beats Indons for Southeast Asia basketball crown

By JAY R. GOTERA

MANILA

THE Philippines won its first regional basketball championship after two years in the freezer Sunday night as the Harbour Centre-Philippine team walloped SM Britama-Indonesia in the finals, 85-67, to clinch the Southeast Basketball Association (SEABA) Champions Cup.

The win vindicated the Philippines’ 74-79 loss against the same Indonesian five during the preliminary round.

The win brought the Philippines’ first international title in two years since it was suspended by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) over the country’s internal squabble on basketball affairs.

Playmaker Marvin Cruz led the Filipinos with a team-high 20 points while import Julius Nwosu provided additional firepower with a double-double of 18 points and 16 rebounds. Jonathan Fernandez and JC Intal also helped from outside the arc to add 16 and 12, respectively.

Coach Junel Baculi said their SEABA win was considered the sweetest since it marked the resurrection of Philippine basketball.

Meanwhile in PBA Fiesta Conference games, San Miguel had some scary moments before pulling off a 96-90 victory over Welcoat Sunday night at the Araneta Coliseum.

The win was only the second for the Beermen against seven losses. They remained at the bottom of the standings a rung lower than the Welcoat Dragons who had a 2-6 card.

In the first game, Willie Miller led Alaska in demolishing Sta. Lucia, 103-88, as the Aces kept abreast of idle Red Bull Barakos and Barangay Ginebra Kings at the top of the standings with a 7-2 card.

The San Miguel Beermen erected a 10-point lead, 91-81, going into the last two minutes of the game.

But as the fans were starting to make a bee-line for the exit at the Araneta Coliseum thinking that a San Miguel victory was assured, the Dragons suddenly uncork a nine-to-nothing run led by Alex Compton to cut the Beermen’s lead to just one, 91-90, going into the last 40 minutes of play.

But the Beermen regrouped in time despite the fouling out of import Galen Young to blunt Welcoat’s ambitions.

In the first game, the Alaska Aces outplayed the Realtors in key departments as coach Tim Cone assured himself of a stint in the league’s mid-year spectacle as coach of the South All-Stars team. The squad has Danny Seigle, Eric Menk, Dondon Hontiveros, Asi Taulava and James Yap as starters.

It will be Cone’s fifth stint in the annual classic, which will enable him to tie Sonny Jaworski and Derick Pumaren for most All-Star Game coaching jobs since the event was institutionalized in 1989.

The North All-Stars will be coached by Barangay Ginebra’s Jong Uichico.

Miller finished with 21 points, the same output tallied by import Rosell Ellis, who also had 11 rebounds, seven assists and two steals as the Aces pounced on the Realtors off the boards, 52-44.

Miller, who shot 8-of-16, including 2-for-3 from the 3-point range, scored 11 points in the first quarter as the Aces took control early and never trailed after closing the quarter up 32-23.

Realtor rookie Kelly Williams led all scorers with 28 points but couldn’t provide spark when Sta. Lucia needed to get back in the game.

The Realtors struggled offensively all night, making just 39 percent of their shots.

Meantime in Carson City, California, Mark Caguioa scored 23 points and Danny Seigle added 21 Friday as Philippines-San Miguel wrapped up its two-week training in the States by shocking the Long Beach State 49ers, a US NCAA Division I school, 93-89, at the Home Depot Center.

Caguioa and Seigle carried the brunt of the Philippines’ second half comeback from double-digit deficits against the bigger, faster 49ers, but it was Jimmy Alapag who provided the crucial baskets as he tied the game 89-all with a three-point shot.

Seigle then hit two free throws with 20 seconds remaining, following a Long Beach miss, to give Philippines-San Miguel a 91-89 lead. Alapag, fouled with four seconds left, sank two free throws to ice the game.

The scores:

Alaska 103 – Miller 21, Ellis 21, Thoss 14, Laure 14, Cariaso 10, Hugnatan 9, Belasco 9, Ferriols 5, Aban 0, Bajar 0, Juinio 0.

Sta. Lucia 88 – Williams 28, Winston 17, Miranda 9, Espino 8, Aquino 6, Omolon 5, Mendoza 5, Catli 3, Gonzales 3, Magsumbol 2, Isip 2, Bughao 0, Santos 0.

Quarterscores: 32-23, 55-45, 78-57, 103-88.

Kings maul Giants in Dubai as Red Bull, Coke win -- April 13, 2007

Kings maul Giants in Dubai as Red Bull, Coke win

By JAY R. GOTERA
MANILA
THE Barangay Ginebra Kings downed the Purefoods Giants, 92-82, Friday night at the Al Ahli Sports Club in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, to remain on top of the standings in PBA Fiesta Cup.

Red Bull kept pace with Ginebra, both with a 7-2 card, as the Barakos mauled the Talk ‘N Text Phone Pals, 102-93, at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.

In the first of the rare three-game PBA offering, the Coca-Cola Tigers turned back the Air21 Express, 123-111.

In Dubai, thousands of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) jammed the Al-Ahli Sports Club as Ginebra, still playing minus six key players, dealt Purefoods its sixth defeat against only three wins.

The match was the first official PBA game in the Middle East.

Earlier, OFWs swarmed their favorite players from both Ginebra and Purefoods while clicking away with their digicams and cellphone cameras for souvenir shots.

Meanwhile at the Araneta Coliseum, Red Bull led all the way to hand Talk ‘N Text its second straight defeat, its fifth overall against three wins.

Talk ‘N Text tried several times to catch up with Red Bull, but the Phone Pals came no closer than eight points in the final canto as Red Bulls’ James Penny and Carlo Sharma doused cold water on the rallying Phone Pals.

In the first game, Coca-Cola’s Anthony Johnson came up with another big game while new acquisitions delivered big numbers to power the Tigers past the Express.

Johnson celebrated his 28th birthday by scoring 28 points and pulling down 18 rebounds as the Tigers snapped a four-game skid and improved their win-loss record to 4-5. The Express dropped to 5-3.

The 6-foot-6 Johnson shot 8-of-12 from the field and 10-of-14 from the foul line.

John Arigo contributed 23 points while Chester Tolomia and Ali Peek chipped in 14 and 13 markers, respectively, for the Tigers.

New acquisitions Alex Cabagnot, Ricky Calimag and Kenneth Duremdes, part of a five-player trade between Coca-Cola and Sta. Lucia Realty last week, displayed fine form and jelled well with their new teammates in just their second game with the Tigers.

Cabagnot, a second-year guard, wound up with 14 points and five assists, Calimag chalked up 13 points and hauled down five rebounds while former MVP Duremdes chipped in eight points.

Down 92-94, Coca-Cola went on a 15-4 run in the final frame with Johnson scoring six points and Duremdes drilling in a huge triple that gave the Tigers a 107-98 lead with 4:12 remaining.

The Express closed in at 102-109 on a jumper by Arwind Santos with 3:32 to go but the Tigers were quick to respond, with Cabagnot scoring on a quick layup and Arigo hitting two from the stripe off a foul by Wynne Arboleda to make it 113-102 with 2:32 left in the game.

Mark Telan led Air21 with 21 points while import Shawn Daniels and guard Gary David had 20 points apiece.

Meanwhile, “Dynamite” Danny Seigle emerged as the top vote-getter among the starters for the 2007 PBA All-Star Game this coming April 29 and will anchor the South All-Stars aiming for a back-to-back win against their North counterparts.
The San Miguel scoring machine tallied a total of 118,260 votes, to lead the voting for this year’s mid-season classic for the first time in this career.

A member of the all-pro RP Team that will try to earn a spot in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Seigle makes up the starting unit for the South along with other leading vote-getters Eric Menk of Barangay Ginebra (104,784), San Miguel teammate Dondon Hontiveros (83,808), Purefoods guard James Yap (106, 004)and Talk ‘N Text big man Asi Taulava (79,000).

The North squad is bannered by the popular Barangay Ginebra backcourt of Mark Caguioa and Jayjay Helterbrand, who received 101,172 and 96,204 votes, respectively.

The Kings’ “Fast & Furious” tandem will team up with Purefoods’ Kerby Raymundo (41,884 votes) and the San Miguel duo of Danny Ildefonso (50,392) and Romel Adducul (63,384) in forming the Northeners’ starting five.

The South All-Stars beat the North All-Stars by a cliffhanger 122-120 in last year’s event in Cagayan de Oro City in Misamis Oriental with Taulava winning his second All-Star Game MVP trophy in three years.

Alaska extends San Miguel's woes -- April 11, 2007

Alaska extends San Miguel’s woes

By JAY R. GOTERA
MANILA
ALASKA drubbed San Miguel, 94-84, Wednesday night at the Araneta Coliseum to
join Red Bull and Barangay Ginebra at the top of the standings in the PBA Fiesta Conference with a 6-2 card.

The loss was the seventh for the Beermen against a single win as they hugged the bottom of the standings.

San Miguel’s highly touted import, Galen Young, struggled throughout the game, scoring only 12 points. It was far from the expectation of San Miguel’s management since Young came fresh from a championship with the Yakima Sun Kings in the Continental Basketball Association in the United States wherein he was adjudged the Most Valuable Player.

Willie Miller led Alaska with 25 points.

Rosell Ellis, whom Alaska chose to recruit for this conference after Young refused to return to the team he first played for in the 2004 Fiesta Conference, played splendid basketball on both ends of the court, finishing with 23 points, 18 rebounds, eight assists, two shotblocks and one steal. He was also responsible for handcuffing Young who shot a terrible 4-for-23 from the field.

With six players scoring eight points or more, Alaska led by as much as 20 points early in the fourth period.

The Beermen, who had six players finishing in double figures led by the 13 of rookie L.A. Tenorio, rallied and came to within seven points with four minutes left in the game. But Ellis came through with a rare triple – his first in the conference in only his second attempt overall – to douse cold water on the SMB rally.

In the first game, Sta. Lucia downed Coca-Cola, 103-100, as the Realtors proved to have gotten the better end of a five-player trade deal with the Tigers.

Former Tiger Denok Miranda anchored Sta. Lucia’s attack, scoring 13 points and providing the much needed hustle and spunk for the Realtors.

Rock Winston also had a stellar performance particularly on the defensive end as the Realtors bounced back from a 101-112 defeat against the Barangay Ginebra Kings last Sunday to improve to 3-4.

The Sta. Lucia import led all scorers with 29 points which came with his 11 rebounds, five assists and four steals in 43 minutes – his second best performance in the conference. He capped his standout game by slowing down Coca-Cola import Anthony Johnson and holding him to just six points in the fourth quarter with the game on the line.

The Realtors turned the game around in the final 2:46 using a 9-0 run staring Miranda, Winston and rookie Kelly Williams.

It was a heartbreaking loss for the Tigers who kept the game close and appeared to have it well under control when Ali Peek, who finished with 19 points, gave them an 81-74 lead early in the fourth.

But the Tigers couldn’t hold on.

Johnson finished with a team-best 26 points but had just six in the fourth quarter as the Tigers picked up their fourth straight loss and fifth in eight games overall.

The Tigers -- who gave up Miranda, Manny Ramos and their 2008 second round pick, for Kenneth Duremdes, Alex Cabagnot and Ricky Calimag -- got a combined 31 points from the trio but 19 turnovers – six in the fourth canto -- cost them the game.

The scores:

First Game
Sta. Lucia 103 – Winston 29, Williams 20, Espino 17, Miranda 3, Omolon 10, Gonzales 5, Aquino 4, Catli 3, Bughao 2, Isip 0, Santos 0, Mendoza 0.
Coca-Cola 100 – Johnson 26, Peek 19, Cabagnot 14, Calimag 11, Arigo 11, Antonio 10, Duremdes 6, Tolomia 3, Avenido 0.
Quarterscores: 26-20, 48-47, 74-76, 103-100.

Second Game

Alaska 94 – Miller 25, Ellis 23, Cariaso 12, Thoss 10, Hugnatan 8, Belasco 8, Laure 6, Ferriols 2, Aban , Bajar 0, Juinio 0.
San Miguel Beer 84 – Tenorio 13, Young 12, Calaguio 12, Ildefonso 12, Racela 10, Pena 10, Wilson 8, Gonzales 5, Cablay 2, Espinas 0, Adducul 0, Adriano 0.

Meanwhile in Carson City, California, Team Philippines, showing off a potential 12th player in George Mason University standout Gabe Norwood, posted win No. 3, beating a selection of American amateur players and aspiring pros, 98-74, before a crowd of close to 300 Filipino-Americans at the Home Depot Center.

Starting with the same unit as the last game, the Nationals raced to a quick 12-0 lead, forcing the opposing coach to call an early timeout. Inspired by the presence of his relatives, Mark Caguioa opened up scoring with a three-point shot, before Asi Taulava and Ranidel de Ocampo took turns attacking the hoop for that dozen-point spread.

The Americans came back strong behind CCA all-conference member Johntae Vincent and ABA veteran Phil Givens to close out the first-quarter down by only 30-24.

Shortly before the quarter ended, Norwood entered the game and immediately made his presence felt via a thunderous slam off a behind the back pass from Jimmy Alapag. Norwood went on to score on a variety of jumpers while running the offense.

The combination of Norwood, Danny Seigle, Caguioa, Mick Pennisi and Kerby Raymundo conspired to tow the Philippines to a commanding 58-42 advantage at halftime.
The Americans never got any closer the rest of the way as Team Philippines continued applying the pressure until the final buzzer.

The scores:

RP-San Miguel – Seigle 21, Caguioa 18, Pennisi 13, de Ocampo 11, Helterbrand 10, Taulava 8, Norwood 8, Raymundo 4, Alapag 4, dela Cruz 2, Ritualo 2. (Hontiveros DNP due to injury)
US Selection – Vincent 21, Givens 15, Bewer 10, Yamatz 8, Bryant 8, Meiller 4, Rivers 4, Lawrence 4, Hamilton 0.

Kings whip Barakos anew to take lead - April 8, 2007

By JAY R. GOTERA

MANILA
UNDERMANNED but still wielding lethal firepower, Barangay Ginebra thrashed Red Bull, 100-86, Sunday night at the Araneta Coliseum to take joint first place with the Barakos in the PBA Fiesta Conference.

It was the Kings’ second defeat of the Barakos this conference, and Ginebra won it despite losing yet another key player to injury.

Star center Erik Menk sat out the game for the Kings as he re-injured his calf muscle during practice. Menk joined Rafi Reavis (shoulder fracture) and Johnny Abarrientos (groin injury) in sick bay, while Rudy Hatfield remained on AWOL status after leaving for the United States to sort out a personal problem with his fiancée.

Moreover, the backcourt duo of Mark Caguioa and Jayjay Helterbrand are still with the Philippine national team.

But despite playing with a severely depleted lineup, Ginebra dished out an A-1 game as the Kings led from start to finish.

Scoring dynamo Rod Neally, high-flying Ronald Tubid and sharp-shooting Sunday Salvacion led the Kings to their sixth win in eight games.

Ginebra raced to a 24-point lead in the second quarter. But in the third canto, the Barakos made a strong comeback to close to within two, 75-73, at the end of the period.

But Red Bull lost steam in the fourth quarter as the Kings regained composure to finish off the Barakos.

In the second game, Purefoods prevailed over Welcoat, 94-82, as the Dragons lost their import Charles Clark to injury just three minutes into the game.

The Marquin Chandler-led Giants proved too much for the all-Filipino Welcoat squad as the Dragons fell to their fifth loss in seven games.

But it was reigning Most Valuable Player James Yap who actually spearheaded the Giants’ assault on the Dragons as he collected 30 points.

It was just the third victory in eight games for Purefoods but coach Ryan Gregorio said the impressive win appeared to signal the team’s resurgence.

“It was unfortunate that Welcoat had to battle us without their import. But we’ll take this (win),” said Gregorio.

“Hopefully, this will be our first step climbing up the ladder. We are working hard to play consistently and hopefully we’ll be able to get out of the rut,” he said.

Disaster struck Welcoat just three minutes into the game when Clark, who averaged 30 points and 11 rebounds per game, sprained a toe on his right foot on a bad fall. He left the game and never returned.

Even without their import, the Dragons tried to mount a rally but poor shooting led to their downfall.

Alex Compton scored a PBA career-best 24 points, including 4-of-9 from three-point range, and rookie Jireh Ibanes had 16 to show the way for the Dragons, who picked up their fifth defeat in eight games and dropped ninth place.

The scores:

Purefoods 94 – Yap J. 30, Chandler 20, Yap R. 14, Yee 9, Artadi 8, Limpot 8, Castillo 3, Salvador 2, Evangelista 0.
Welcoat 82 – Compton 24, Ibanes 16, Reyes 10, Sta. Maria 7, Lopez 6, Wainwright 6, Cabatu 5, Gelig 4, Lao 4, Clark 0, Baguion 0.
Quarterscores: 25-9, 57-32, 71-52, 94-82.

Meanwhile, the Philippine national basketball team crushed Cal State-Dominguez Hills, an NCAA Division-II school in the United States, 90-71, at the Home Depot Training Center in Carson City, California.

With Jayjay Helterbrand, Mark Caguioa, Tony de la Cruz, Ranidel de Ocampo and Asi Taulava as its starting five, Philippines-San Miguel opened a 7-0 lead that appeared to surprise the Dominguez Hills Toros.

Caguioa finished with 22 points while Danny Seigle came off the bench with 14.
Behind their leader Jamel Barnes, the Toros closed the gap halfway through the period. But the Nationals’ second unit – Jimmy Alapag, Dondon Hontiveros, Kerby Raymundo, Mick Pennisi and Seigle – restored the advantage and set Team Philippines on the road to a 31-16 first quarter breakaway.

The Toros tried to rattle the Filipinos with a 1-3-1 defense, but Renren Ritualo, Hontiveros and Pennisi brought Cal-State right out of the zone with long-range bombs from beyond the arc.

The lead was 48-28 at the half, a bulge RP-San Miguel maintained at the end of three quarters, 70-50.

The scores:

RP-SAN MIGUEL 90 – Caguioa 22, Seigle 16, De la Cruz 14, Pennisi 9, Raymundo 8, Taulava 6, Hontiveros 4, Ritualo 3, Alapag 3, De Ocampo 3, Helterbrand 2.
CAL STATE-DOMINGUEZ – Ward 16, Walton 14, Steed 10, Nibo 9, Barnes 6, Love 4, Isaac 4, Fowler 2, Ramey 2, Duhon 2, Johnson 0.
Quarters: 31-16; 48-28; 70-50; 90-71.

In other developments, Sta. Lucia and Coca-Cola have agreed to a multi-player swap with the Realtors dealing Kenneth Duremdes -- the 1998 PBA Most Valuable Player – along with sophomore guard Alex Cabagnot and reserve forward Ricky Calimag to Coca-Cola.

Duremdes will now be playing alongside former teammates John Arigo and Ali Peek when the Coca-Cola Tigers collide with the Realtors on Wednesday.

In return, the Tigers, who were removed from the San Miguel Corporation umbrella following the sale of Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines Inc. to The Coca-Cola Company, gave up former Far Eastern U point guard Dennis Miranda, substitute center Manny Ramos and Coke’s second round pick in the 2008 Rookie Draft.

Duremdes, now 33 and one of the league’s 25 greatest players, said he feels sad about the development but at the same time excited to face a new challenge in his career.

San Miguel scores first win - April 4, 2007

By JAY R. GOTERA

The Saudi Gazette

MANILA

SAN Miguel finally broke into the win column after seven games, beating Talk ‘N Text, 108-103, Wednesday night in PBA Fiesta Conference at the Araneta Coliseum.

The firepower of San Miguel’s Paul McMillan proved too much for the Phone Pals as they fell to 3-4 in the standings in a tie with Coca-Cola for fifth and sixth places.

McMillan scored 41 points and collected 18 rebounds as he shrugged off early foul trouble to help San Miguel notch only its first win in 11 games going back to the best-of-seven finals of the last PBA Philippine Cup where it lost to Barangay Ginebra after winning the first two games of the series.

Olsen Racela also played a crucial role in San Miguel’s victory as he knocked in 13 points, including three three-pointers in the second half which stymied the rallying Phone Pals.

In the first game, Air21 routed Alaska, 116-104, as the Express tied the Aces and the Kings at second place on a 5-2 card.

Gary David spearheaded Air21’s offense as he fired a a game-high 27 points.

The Express dominated the game from late in the first quarter on, erecting as much as a 22-point lead before allowing the Aces to come no closer than 12 points the rest of the way.

Wynne Arboleda also took credit for the win, scoring all his 16 points in the third quarter on a perfect 6-for-6 from the field. Arboleda’s heroics enabled the Express to increase its lead to as much as 21 points.

Alaska, which ended a 3-game win streak, suffered its worst loss in more than a year, or since a 91-73 beating at the hands of Purefoods in last season’s Philippine Cup.

Rosell Ellis tallied 38 points–his highest since scoring 46 for Coca-Cola in 2001–and 14 rebounds but it still proved not enough for Alaska.

The scores:

Air21 116 – David 27, Daniels 19, Arboleda 16, Santos 14, Telan 14, Canaleta 10, Se 8, Dimaunahan 4, Torion 4, Andaya 0, Bernardo 0.

Alaska 104 – Ellis 38, Thoss 16, Miller 14, Hugnatan 8, Ferriols 8, Cariaso 8, Laure 6, Luanzon 2, Bajar 2, Belasco 2, Aban 0, Castro 0, Juinio 0.

Quarterscores: 32-24, 61-44, 97-82, 116-104.

Meanwhile, the Philippine national basketball squad rallied from 18 point down to defeat ABA Hollywood Fame, an American team beefed up by former NBA players, 98-81, in the team’s first tuneup game in Carson City, California.

Fame was led by Bryon Russel, a 6’7” former Los Angeles and Utah forward.

The Filipinos missed their first four shots and quickly trailed by double digits as Jimmy Johnson, 6-foot-5 Billy Knight, 6’6 Mo Spillers, 6’9 Ron Mingo and Russel dominated the inside and surprised the visitors with their deft outside shooting.

Fame further hammered the Filipinos with 6’9 John Nortridge, who combined with Jamaal Kendricks in opening an 18-point lead early in the second quarter.

But before the half ended, Asi Taulava, Danny Seigle, Mick Pennisi, Renren Ritualo and Jayjay Helterbrand started connecting.

Ritualo and Pennisi engineered a scorching rally that wiped out the deficit as Fame went into the locker room holding only a one-point edge, 51-50.

The second half was the Philippines all the way with Pennisi and Dondon Hontiveros delivering long-distance bombs and Helterbrand shredding the Fame defense in setting up Tony dela Cruz at the perimeter.

The Americans trailed by 10 at the start of the fourth quarter and went into a full-court press which the Filipinos easily broke down with superb ball-handling.

Crippled Ginebra still wins vs Sta. Lucia - April 1, 2007

By JAY R. GOTERA

The Saudi Gazette

MANILA

BARANGAY Ginebra willed itself to victory despite playing without five key players, thumping Sta. Lucia, 112-101, Sunday night at the Araneta Coliseum in the PBA Fiesta Conference.

Rod Nealy exploded for 37 points, 19 rebounds and five assists to once again lead the Kings who played without Rudy Hatfield, Johnny Abarrientos, Mark Caguioa, Jayjay Helterbrand and Rafi Reavis – almost the entire nucleus of the team.

Hatfield had to leave for the United States to be with his troubled fiancée, Abarrientos was still saddled with an undisclosed injury, Reavis was still in the United States recuperating from surgery while Caguioa and Helterbrand are with the Philippine national basketball team.

Erik Menk, Ronald Tubid and Sunday Salvacion – Ginebra’s remaining local frontliners – stepped up big together with reserve Egay Echavez to push the Kings to their fifth victory in seven games.

The loss was the fourth for the Realtors who had no answer to Nealy, Ginebra’s workhorse import and prolific scoring machine.

Rookie Kelly Williams paced Sta. Lucia with 34 points, a conference-record for the Fil-American forward.

In the second game, the Red Bull Barakos scored their third straight win with a 102-90 victory over the Coca-Cola Tigers.

James Penny led the Barakos with 28 points, 22 of them coming in the second half.

Head coach Yeng Guiao, who is the reelectionist vice governor of Pampanga, sat out the game to make sure he wouldn’t commit any election-related violation.

Guiao’s absence hardly mattered though as the Barakos unleashed the same brand of energy and firepower they showed in past games.

With Penny hounding Coca-Cola import Anthony Johnson, Celino Cruz, Cyrus Baguio and Larry Fonacier took care of the scoring and propelled Red Bull to a 51-46 lead at halftime.

When Red Bull’s locals started cooling off in the second half, Penny took charge. The hardworking Red Bull import scored 11 points in each of the last two quarters including seven straight which erased a 65-64 Coca-Cola lead and put the Barakos ahead to stay, 71-65, late in the third quarter.

Larry Fonacier tossed in 17 points and Baguio had 16 and eight assists for Red Bull which improved to 6-1 (win-loss) record to stay on top of the standings.

It was another frustrating loss for the Tigers, who kept the game close but couldn’t come up with Red Bull’s telling spurt in the closing minutes.

Coca-Cola shot 51 percent in the first half as compared to Red Bull’s 41 percent but the Barakos had the lead at halftime on the strength of their 8-of-17 shooting from beyond the three-point arc.

The scores:

First Game

Red Bull 102 – Penny 28, Fonacier 17, Baguio 16, Cruz 9, Hrabak 9, Robinson 5, Valenzuela 5, Alvarez 4, Villanueva 4, Ybanez 3, Najorda 2, Bugia 0, Sharma 0.

Coca-Cola 90 – Johnson 21, Peek 21, Miranda 16, Arigo 13, Antonio 10, Avenido 5, Misolas 2, Tolomia 2, Pacana 0, Sotto 0.

Quarterscores: 29-22, 51-46, 73-68, 102-90.

Alaska 94, Purefoods 80

Alaska Milk crushed Purefoods Tender Juicy, 94-80, Saturday night in Subic, Zambales province.

The Aces found no answer on their searing start and blazing windup as they stretched their streak to three games with a 4-1 win-loss cards.

Alaska opened up with 10 unanswered points and played steadily up to the finish in dealing Purefoods its fifth defeat against two wins.

The Giants are now 2-2 with Marquin Chandler as their import in the season-ending tourney.

Chandler had a game-high 34 points but Alaska countered with a balanced offense that saw four Alaska Aces finish in double figures.

Willie Miller paced the Aces with 23 points, including a jumper to close the scoring at 94-80 with 30 seconds left in the clock. That was the biggest margin in the contest.

The scores:

Alaska 94 – Miller 23, Cariaso 18, Ellis 12, Thoss 11, Belasco 9, Aban 6, Hugnatan 6, Ferriols 5, Laure 4, Bajar 0.

Purefoods 80 – Chandler 34, Yap J. 20, Evangelista 10, Simon 7, Yee 4, Yap R. 3, Artadi 2, Castillo 0, Salvador 0.

Quarterscores: 25-22, 45-42, 70-63, 94-80

Depleted Ginebra bows to TNT - March 30, 2007

By JAY R. GOTERA

The Saudi Gazette

MANILA

A BADLY undermanned Barangay Ginebra squad put up a fierce fight before bowing to Talk ‘N Text, 99-92, Friday night in the PBA Fiesta Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.

Already without the services of Mark Caguioa and Jayjay Helterbrand who are on loan to the Philippine national basketball team, Ginebra lost two more vital cogs as Rudy Hatfield suddenly left the team for the United States and Johnny Abarrientos sat out the game due to injury.

Though decimated, Barangay Ginebra put up a brave front but could not match the energy and firepower of the Talk ‘N Text Phone Pals as the Kings suffered their second loss in the conference.

J.J. Sullinger, Mark Cardona and Egay Billones carried the fight for the Phone Pals who registered their third victory in six games.

Sullinger was in his usual deadly form, leading the Pals with 31 points, 13 rebounds, four assists, three steals and one block.

Ginebra’s Rod Nealy also had solid numbers with 34 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists, but the Kings sorely missed the services of Hatfield and Abarrientos.

Hatfield has taken an indefinite leave of absence to sort out personal

problem in the United States while Abarrientos suffered a still unclear injury.

Nonetheless, the Kings played a solid game in the first half, carrying a 54-43 margin into the final half.

But the Pals were able to neutralize the Kings in the third with Sullinger, Cardona and Billones starring on the offensive end.

Welcoat 103, Air21 99

In the first game, the Welcoat Dragons spewed fire late in the fourth quarter to down erstwhile leader Air21 Express, 103-99 in overtime.

Charles Clark had a monster game with 40 points and 21 rebounds – the first 40-20 game of the season. Backed by Denver Lopez and JayR Reyes in the extension period, Clark towed Welcoat to its second victory in the conference after back-to-back losses to Alaska and Talk ‘N Text.

Reyes added 19 points and 13 rebounds and Lopez also 19 points.

Air21 was led by Gary David who tallied 27 points and Shawn Daniels who scored 20 markers and 17 rebounds.

Unlike in their previous games, Air21 showed little of the intensity and determination that carried them to victory.

Daniels brought Air21 within 99-100, with still 1:57 to go, but the team missed four attempts and turned the ball over twice the rest of the way to lose their second straight game and drop to a 4-2 slate overall.

Welcoat, which lost to Alaska by 21 points last week and to TNT by 22 last Saturday, missed winning outright in regulation when Daniels pulled off a clean block on Robert Wainwright in the dying seconds.

Air21’s Homer Se was serving out a one-game suspension he incurred for being ejected in the course of the team’s 106-111 loss to Red Bull last Wednesday. Welcoat coach Leo Austria said this helped his team control Daniels more.

Apart from the suspension, Se was also fined P50,000 for coming physically into contact with referee Throngy Aldaba while the player was pleading his case.

The Dragons actually came back from a 79-88 deficit in the last 2:40 of regulation by holding Air21 scoreless for more than two minutes and leaning on Clark, Lopez and Reyes to go up 93-90.

The Express’ hopes were rekindled by an Arwind Santos triple that knotted the count at 93, with still 25 seconds to go in the fourth period.

Air21 seemed bent on rebounding in a big way from that loss to the Barakos when Daniels joined hands with Aris Dimaunahan and Mark Andaya in a massive 25-7 surge that gave them their first of three 14-point leads at 40-26.

David’s jumper made it a 51-38 game with 9:57 left in the third period before Welcoat staged its most notable surge in the game and perhaps in the entire conference.

With the Dragons finally making the stops and Lopez and Clark spearheading their attack the league’s newest member unloaded a swirling 18-0 attack capped by a Jireh Ibanes lay-up that gave them a 56-51 spread.

The scores:

First Game

Welcoat 103 – Clark 40, Reyes 19, Lopez 19, Wainwright 10, Compton 8, Gelig 5, Ibanes 2, Baguion 0, Cabatu 0, Lao 0, Feihl 0.

Air21 99 – David 27, Daniels 20, Santos 17, Canaleta 10, Dimaunahan 7, Arboleda 7, Telan 5, Andaya 4, Torion 2.

Quarterscores: 19-19, 34-45, 60-57, 93-93, 103-99.

Second Game

Talk ‘N Text 99 – Sullinger 31, Cardona 28, Billones 14, Carey 8,

Allado 8, Washington 5, Fran 3, Belano 2, Pablo 0, De Ocampo 0.

Ginebra 92 – Nealy 34, Macapagal 12, Menk 10, Chia 8, Tubid 8,

Salvacion 6, Mamaril 5, Seigle 4, Echavez 3, Santos 2, Holper 0.

Quarterscores: 21-23, 43-54, 69-65, 99-92

San Miguel suffers 6th straight loss - March 29, 2007

By JAY R. GOTERA

The Saudi Gazette

MANILA

SAN Miguel absorbed its sixth straight loss and remained winless in the PBA Fiesta Conference, losing to Sta. Lucia, 95-90, Thursday night at the Fresnedi Gym in Muntinlupa City.

The defeat marked the worst start for San Miguel in its franchise history. Ironically, San Miguel has the most number of championships in the PBA.

Despite the impressive performance of import Paul MacMillan, the Beermen continued to be hounded by lackluster plays and poor shooting.

The win was only the second for the Realtors who are likewise struggling in the conference, but not as worse as the Beermen.

Meanwhile, just days after guaranteeing another Barangay Ginebra title win in the PBA Fiesta Cup, Fil-American Rudy Hatfield left for the United States last Wednesday to attend to a domestic problem and may not be back soon.

Hatfield’s hasty departure left the Kings, already missing the backcourt duo of Mark Caguioa and Jayjay Helterbrand, without another dependable player in their quest for a second straight championship.

“We were not able to talk on when he’ll return,” Ginebra coach Jong Uichico said Thursday. “What he told me is that he needs to fix something as soon as possible.”

Uichico refused to go into the details of the problem that forced the 6-foot-4, do-it-all forward to abruptly leave the team. Other sources, however, said Hatfield will involve himself in a custody battle involving his fiancee’s child.

Hatfield’s wedding with his fiancée, Bethany, in early August prevented him from joining the Philippine Team gearing up for both the South East Asia Basketball Association Championship in May and the FIBA-Asia tourney in Japan.

His wedding, which took more than a year to plan and set up, will overlap with the FIBA-Asian tournament in Saitama, Japan, that runs until Aug. 5.

Regarding Friday’s games, Air21 seeks to regain the top spot in the standings as the Express tangle with the Welcoat Dragons at the Araneta Coliseum.

“How we play tomorrow will be a good test of the character of this team,” said Air21 coach Bo Perasol. “We need to bounce back from our loss. The only way to do that is to remain aggressive.”

A win will give Air21 a share of the lead and, more importantly, recharge the Express’ drive that was cut short by the Bulls last Wednesday.

The Dragons are coming off a 78-100 shellacking from the TNT Phone Pals last Saturday in Cabanatuan City in a game where the league’s newest franchise trailed by as many as 35 points.

That doesn’t mean Air21 can afford to take Welcoat lightly, however.

“Every time we go up against Welcoat, I instill only one word in the minds of the players: Respect,” said Perasol.

“We have to learn to be more exact in executing our game plans. Our game versus Red Bull should teach us to play every second of the game,” he said.

Talk N Text also aims to recover from a numbing 95-101 loss to Purefoods last Wednesday when it takes on undermanned Ginebra in the other game.

Red Bull downs Air21 to take lead - March 28, 2007

By JAY R. GOTERA

The Saudi Gazette

MANILA

RED Bull survived Air 21’s relentless rally for a 116-111 victory Wednesday night in the PBA Fiesta Cup. The win catapulted the Barakos into the lead of the conference.

In the second game, Purefoods scored its second victory after six games in the PBA Fiesta Cup, beating Talk ‘N Text 101-95.

Marquin Chandler and James Yap led Purefoods with 29 and 23 points respectively. The two waxed hot from beyond the arc in the fourth quarter, scoring a barrage of three-pointers following timely assists given by Paul Artadi.

Yap, who was 0-of-8 from the field in the first three quarters, fired three triples and totaled 15 points in the payoff period.

Purefoods lost an early 17-point lead, but Yap and Artadi carried the fight for the Giants, teaming up in a decisive run that had the team regaining control at 89-84.

In the earlier game, James Penny endured hard, bruising fouls as he collected 40 points in leading the Barakos to victory.

Penny, who led Red Bull to last year’s title, practically carried the load for Red Bull although it took two crucial baskets from Cyrus Baguio and Carlo Sharma in the closing minutes to seal the win and deal the Express their first loss in the tournament.

Red Bull’s workhorse import went to work early, exploding for 27 points in the first half as the Barakos, who never trailed in the game, posted comfortable leads which went as high as 16 points at 70-54 on a three-pointer by Celino Cruz to start the third quarter.

“This is for the conference leadership so we really treated it as a special game,” said Red Bull head coach Yeng Guiao after the Barakos improved to a 5-1 (win-loss) record.

“It was a matter of Penny coming through again for us offensively and defensively,” Guiao added.

Penny shot 14-of-34 from the field and 11-of-16 from the free throw line, had four shotblocks and grabbed 14 rebounds for his sixth double-double in as many games.

“As good and as hard as Air21 played, I really felt this is the game where the breaks might now work against their favor,” Guiao offered.

The Red Bull chieftain said his troops’ confidence is so high coming off a 35-point romp over the Sta. Lucia Realtors last week. In contrast he said, the Express, who came into the game with a four-game winning streak, were flirting with the law of averages.

Junthy Valenzuela scored 15 points, Baguio added 12 and Sharma and Larry Fonacier had 10 apiece for Red Bull which shot 44 percent from the field, had a 21-16 edge in fastbreak points and netted 29 turnover points, 12 more than the Express, who committed 24 errors.

The Express went into the game determined to extend further their franchise record four-game winning streak. And they knew well that to accomplish their mission they had to contain their biggest obstacle – Penny.

So Air21 coach Bo Perasol threw in his best frontline defenders – Nino Canaleta, Arwind Santos, Homer Se, Bryan Bernardo and Mark Telan – one after the other to work on Red Bull’s versatile import.

Unfortunately, neither one of them succeeded in containing Penny and worse, each one of them went into foul trouble at the end of the opening half.

To add insult to injury, Se, who knocked Penny down on a hard foul earlier, was ejected from the game after making physical contact with a game official while trying to plea his case.

Shawn Daniels tallied 29 points and 19 boards, missing his second triple-double of the conference by just two assists. Gary David added 24 and Santos chipped in 21 for the Express, who had their poor shooting from the foul line partly to blame for the defeat. Air21 made just 22-of- 37 free throws.

The scores:

First Game

Red Bull 116 – Penny 40, Valenzuela 15, Baguio 12, Fonacier 10, Sharma 10, Najorda 6, Robinson 6, Cruz 6, Villanueva 5, Alvarez 4, Bugia 2, Ybanez 0, Hrabak 0.

Air21 111 – Daniels 29, David 24, Santos 21, Telan 10, Canaleta 9, Arboleda 5, Andaya 4, Dimaunahan 3, Bernardo 2, Se 2, Torion 2.

Quarterscores: 31-22, 67-54, 95-86, 116-111.

Second Game

Purefoods 101 – Chandler 29, Yap J. 23, Yee 14, Evangelista 11, Salvador 8, Castillo 8, Artadi 4, Simon 4, Yap R. 0.

Talk n Text 95 – Sullinger 34, Cardona 15, Washington 14, Carey 13, Allado 6, Belano 6, Fran 3, De Ocampo 3, Billones 1.

Quarterscores: 28-14, 48-39, 68-70, 101-95

Ginebra maintains mastery of San Miguel - March 25, 2007

By JAY R. GOTERA

The Saudi Gazette

MANILA

BARANGAY Ginebra dealt San Miguel a crushing 102-84 loss Sunday night in the PBA Fiesta Cup, maintaining its mastery over the Beermen whom it has beaten for the fifth straight time this year going back into the finals of the recent Philippine Cup.

The victory was the fourth straight for the Kings this conference as they kept their hold of second place in the standings together with the Red Bull Barakos and the Alaska Aces.

As in previous games, import Rod Nealy led Ginebra, finishing with 43 points and 17 points.

Rudy Hatfield also had a double-double game with 22 points and 11 rebounds.

It was a seesaw game from the first up to the third quarter with the Kings racing to a 14-point lead at the end of the first quarter.

Ginebra extended the lead to 21 points at the start of the second quarter, 36-15. But then the Beermen recovered their bearings and launched a fierce rally to seize the lead 49-48 at halftime.

But the Kings would not be denied as they reasserted their might in the third quarter, scoring 14 straight baskets in 11 minutes in an awesome display of firepower.

Ginebra kept San Miguel at bay the rest of the game to assure itself of victory.

In the first game, Alaska thwarted a last-ditch rally by Coca-Cola to score a 106-100 victory.

Willie Miller led the Aces with 19 points, scoring 13 of them in the final period.

Miller was ably supported by import Rosell Ellis who finished with 18 points.

The scores:

First Game

Alaska 106 – Miller 19, Ellis 18, Cariaso 15, Thoss 11, Bajar 11, Hugnatan 8, Ferriols 8, Juinio 6, Belasco 6, Laure 4, Aban 0, Singson 0.

Coca-Cola 100 – Johnson 32, Peek 19, Avenido 18, Antonio 16, Miranda 7, Tolomia 4, Pacana 2, Arigo 2, Franco 0, Misolas 0.

Quarterscores: 20-20, 51-39, 76-62, 106-100.

Second Game

Ginebra 102 – Nealy 43, Hatfield 22, Tubid 14, Abarrientos 10, Macapagal 5, Echavez 2, Mamaril 2, Salvacion 2, Santos 2, Holper 0.

San Miguel 84 – McMillan 41, Calaguio 11, Gonzales 7, Cablay 7, Espinas 6, Tenorio 5, Racela 5, Pena 2, Adducul 0, Adriano 0.

Quarterscores: 34-15, 48-49, 81-63, 102-84.

Talk ‘N Text 100, Welcoat 78

The Talk ‘N Text Phone Pals mauled the Welcoat Dragons, 100-78, in an out-of-town PBA game in Cabanatuan City Saturday.

The Phone Pals got off to a jackrabbit start and dominated the Dragons up to the finish.

J.J. Sullinger set the tone of the match early while going 3-of-3 from beyond the arc in the first period of the game which was the league’s first in Cabanatuan City in 12 years.

With the entire team hitting at a 48-percent field-goal shooting, the Pals took a 53-26 halftime advantage and were never threatened in the final 24 minutes of play.

The Phone Pals improved their record to 2-2 while dealing the Dragons a fourth defeat against a lone win.

The scores:

Talk ‘N Text 100 – Sullinger 20, Cardona 13, Washington 12, Billones 11, Allado 10, Belano 10, De Ocampo Y. 9 , Carey 3, Fran 3, Aldave 0, Santos 0.

Welcoat 78 – Clark 33, Ibanes 7, Sta. Maria 6, Lao 5, Reyes 5, Wainwright 3, Feihl 3, Lopez 3, Baguion 3, Gelig 3, Sagad 2, Compton 2,

Quarterscores: 28-10, 53-26, 78-48, 100-78.

Bernardino, 59

Meanwhile, Jun Bernardino, the PBA commissioner from 1994 to 2002, suffered a heart attack Friday evening while celebrating a birthday party with his family and friends at the Manila Polo Club. He passed away early Saturday morning at the Makati Medical Center. He was 59.

Bernardino left behind an unforgettable legacy in Philippine basketball.

A basketball man practically all his life, Bernardino played for Ateneo in elementary and high school, then UP in college. He began his PBA career in 1979 as an assistant coach, then as a TV interviewer, executive secretary, executive director, deputy commissioner and finally commissioner.