As of this writing, there are four squads remaining who are vying for the two tickets to the finals. There are the traditional powerhouse squad: the reigning champions, Talk N Text (TnT) Tropang Texters who are facing their arch-nemesis, Petron Blazer Boosters. And then, there are the upstarts, the eighth-seeded Powerade Tigers, the lowest-ranked squad in the playoffs going up against the overachieving Rain or Shine (RoS) Elasto Painters.
Photo Credits: www.interaksyon.com
So far, the Boosters has had the number of the Manny Pangilinan-owned franchise, leading the best-of-seven series, 2-1. On the other side, the Elasto Painters and the Tigers are dead-even at 2-2.
The Tigers have been dubbed the Cinderellas of this conference, owing to the fact that in the quarterfinal round, they were told that “they had no chance in hell” against league-MVP James Yap and the rest of the BMEG Derby Ace Llamados. As if climbing the mountain was not hard enough, the Llamados were also awarded a twice-to-beat advantage by virtue of their lofty standing after the elimination round.
But lo and behold, the Tigers fought for their lives and behind the incredible shot-making of this conference’s revelation, Gary “El Granada” David, they vanquished Llamados in two thrilling outings. David has so far continued to shine in this playoffs, extending his scoring streak of 30 points or more to six games.
However, David’s 30-point outing in Game 4 proved to be futile as RoS won in convincing fashion, 110-95, to tie the series up at 2-2. Lefty wingman Jeff Chan paced their balanced offensive with 19 points while rookie sensation, Paul Lee, atoned for his costly blunders in Game 3, with a 15-point, five-rebound, five-assist showing that further cemented his standing as the league’s best neophyte.
The other wards of RoS’ fiery head coach Yeng Guiao, who was fined a whopping P80,000 for his comments regarding the officiating in the previous game, also stepped up with Ronnie Matias scoring 12 and Gabe Norwood adding 11 points.
In the other semifinal pairing, the Blaze Boosters continue to frustrate the Texters with their heart, hustle and perseverance. TnT is actually out for revenge against Petron after the latter upset the former in the finals of the Governor’s Cup last year. The loss doubly hurt the Texters deeply as it denied them an immaculate “grandslam,” after winning the Philippine Cup and Commissioner’s Cup crowns.
TnT won Game 1, thanks to the lethal perimeter shooting of Larry Rodriguez. But since then, the Texters have lost their groove, more so in Game 3 when they erected a 20-point bulge and watched as it withered away until Petron’s clutch man, Alex Cabagnot, hit a dagger of a three-pointer in the game’s dying seconds that gave them a 95-93 victory.
Photo Credits: www.interaksyon.com
Petron got contributions from all corners with lithe forward Arwind Santos scoring 25 and 15 rebounds and Denok Miranda chipping in with 20 points.
The Philippine Cup playoffs has been nothing short of spectacular and a treat to basketball lovers, all over the country. And no doubt, the heat and the pressure will further intensify as the games go on all the way to the championship round.
Jonas N. Panerio
Sports Writer
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