Casio stars as Aces slay mighty Texters

The Casio-Abueva connection is turning out to be a deadly combination.

JVee Casio hit three straight three-pointers and a game-tying layup as Alaska overcame an 11-point lead by Talk n' Text in the end game to hand the Tropang Texters their first defeat of the season, 94-92, Friday at the Araneta Coliseum.

"He made us look good single handedly like that," said Alaska head coach Luigi Trillo. "It's nice to see them scratch and claw. (It) builds character for this kind of team."

After a Ranidel De Ocampo miss at one end of the court, the Aces had 5.3 seconds remaining to win the game. Trillo called a timeout to set up the final play that had Casio receiving the inbounds from Tony Dela Cruz. The gutsy guard drove to the rim, evading the Talk n' Text defense for the lead with 2.4 seconds remaining, 94-92.

After a timeout by Norman Black, the Texters then went with Fonacier, who had his short jumper rattle out as Talk n' Text suffered its first loss of the season.

"We're also lucky. Coach Norman put a good play in the end. Sometimes, its just like that, breaks," added Trillo.

A 28-16 third quarter gave the Texters a 74-68 lead entering the payoff period. After a Bam Gamalinda three and a technical foul on Alaska head coach Luigi Trillo, Talk n' Text found themselves with a comfortable 11-point lead, 83-72, with 6:04 remaining in the game.

The Aces then went to Baguio, who hit back to back drives. A defensive stop by Abueva at the other end led to a Casio four-point play with 3:08 remaining to cut the lead to two, 83-81.

At the 2:44 mark, Larry Fonacier snapped the Aces' 9-0 run with his own tough trey, before Casio went on automatic mode, hitting back to back threes to give the Aces the lead, 87-86. The former La Salle standout was slapped with a foul at the other end that led to three freethrows for Alapag to give the Texters a two-point lead yet again, 89-87.

A split by Williams made it a three-point game at the 1:24 mark, before Abueva hit an open three off a Casio assist to tie the game, 90-all.

After the game-tying trey, Calvin Abueva fouled out with 1:06 ticks to go, while Kelly Williams hit two freethrows to give Talk n' Text a two-point lead. Williams was then slapped with a goaltending call on a layup by Baguio with 28.6 seconds remaining to tie the game yet again, 92-all. In the ensuing play, the Texters went with De Ocampo for a baseline jumper that bounced off the rim, leading to the Casio game-winner.

The triple threat of Casio, Baguio, and Abueva combined for 55 big points to lead the Aces. Super rookie Abueva had another all-around game with five boards, four assists, and five steals.

Alapag paced the Texters with 17, while De Ocampo added 15. Ryan Reyes and Williams chipped in 13 each in the losing effort.

It is the first time that the Aces have won against the Texters since 2009. The Texters still have a hold of the top spot in the standings, though, with a 6-1 win-loss card, while the Aces secure the second spot with 5-2.

The scores:

ALASKA 94 - Casio 25, Baguio 16, Abueva 14, Thoss 13, Jazul 8, Baracael 6, Hontiveros 6, Espinas 4, Reyes 2, Dela Cruz 0, Belasco 0.

TALK N' TEXT 92 - Alapag 17, De Ocampo 15, Reyes 13, Williams 13, Peek 11, Castro 10, Fonacier 5, Gamalinda 3, Aban 3, Carey 2.

Quarters: 29-20, 52-45, 68-73, 94-92