Ginebra and Meralco to determine playoff seedings

Barangay Ginebra San Miguel and Meralco take on separate opponents to determine their respective playoff seedings in the final playdate of the Philippine Cup elimination round Sunday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.

The Bolts take on the San Mig Coffee Mixers in the opener at 4 p.m. before the Gin Kings battle the Talk ‘N Text Tropang Texters in the nightcap at 6:30 p.m.

Meralco and Ginebra are tied at fifth and sixth places, and their quarterfinal opponents will depend on the results of Sunday’s games.

Because Meralco won its lone match with Ginebra this conference, a win by the Bolts or a loss by the Gin Kings will result in a playoff pairing between Meralco and Alaska as well as Rain or Shine and Ginebra. Each of those matchups will be a best-of-three series.


A win by Ginebra and a loss by Meralco would allow the Gin Kings to leapfrog the Bolts. That would set up a quarterfinal clash between Rain or Shine and Meralco as well as Alaska and Ginebra.

The games don’t hold any meaning for Talk ‘N Text and San Mig Coffee, which are assured of finishing first and second after the eliminations, respectively. The two teams are locked in against their playoff opponents, with each squad enjoying a twice-to-beat advantage.

The Tropang Texters will be taking on eighth seed Air 21, while the Mixers will face No. 7 Petron Blaze in the quarterfinals.

barangay ginebra gin kings , meralco bolts , san mig coffee mixers , talk 'n text tropang texters

Barako stop Ginebra to win number six

Barako Bull held off a late charge by Barangay Ginebra San Miguel to come away with an 83-79 victory Sunday at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.

The win comes at a crucial time for Barako Bull, which snapped a four-game losing streak to move into a tie with idle Air 21 for the final quarterfinal spot with identical 4-9 records. The Energy Colas did it at the expense of what had been the hottest team in the tournament, as Ginebra had won five straight matches coming into the game.


“Siguro dahil sa napakagandang laro ng Ginebra last time, the tendency is to go down. But without taking away the effort of the players, we really played a hell of a defense. Ngayon pa lang gumagana yung defense na gusto naming mangyari, which we tried to adopt ever since my good friend coach Junel Baculi was coaching the team,” said Barako Bull coach Bong Ramos, who won his first PBA game since returning to the helm of the squad.

“Our defense was there even during our game against Meralco where we limited Sol Mercado, the No.1 scorer in the league as well as Mark Cardona and Ronjay Buenafe. Sadly, nakalusot lang yung mga role players nila, like Kelly Nabong.”

Barako Bull led for most of the first half, before Ginebra opened with a hot third quarter to briefly take the lead, 39-38, on a Rico Maierhofer layup. But the Energy Colas ended the period with a 13-7 run to take a 52-45 advantage heading into the final period.

The rampage continued for Barako Bull in the fourth quarter, pushing the lead to 11 points, 58-47, on a Ronald Tubid three-pointer. Mark Caguioa scored four points in a quick 6-2 Ginebra run, before Barako Bull rattled off a 10-2 blast to take its biggest lead, 70-55.

There was plenty of fight left in Ginebra, which rallied with Caguioa on the bench once more to cut the Barako advantage to just five points, 76-71. But Roger Yap, who scored 14 points and handed out five assists, hit a crucial three-pointer with less than a minute left to push the lead out of reach, 79-71.

Ronald Tubid scored 18 points to lead five players in double figures for Barako Bull, while Leo Najorda had 12 of his 14 points in the second half.

Ginebra’s win-loss record dropped to 7-6 into a three-way tie for fourth to sixth places with Alaska and Meralco.

The scores:

BARAKO BULL 83 – Tubid 18, Najorda 14, Yap 14, Cruz 10, Seigle 10, Kramer 6, Pennisi 6, Anthony 4, Ballesteros 1.

GINEBRA 79 – Helterbrand 18, Caguioa 13, Ellis 12, Mamaril 12, Maierhofer 8, Tenorio 8, Raymundo 6, Wilson 2, Taha 0, Maliksi 0, Espiritu 0, Hatfield 0.

Quarters: 16-17, 29-26, 52-45, 83-79

barangay ginebra gin kings , san mig coffee mixers

San Mig Coffee against Rain or Shine; Ginebra battles Barako

San Mig Coffee and Rain or Shine collide in a crucial encounter that would take the winner closer to the No. 2 spot in the 2013 PBA Philippine Cup on Sunday at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.

The Mixers (8-3) and the Elasto Painters (8-4) meet at 6:30 p.m. with the winner getting an inside track for one of the remaining top two spots, with Talk ‘N Text (11-2) is expected to grab the top spot. The first and second place teams will enjoy twice-to-beat advantages in the quarterfinals.

In the opener, Barangay Ginebra San Miguel tries to extend its winning streak against Barako Bull at 4:15 p.m.

“Rain or Shine is always a challenge to play against. We’ve played a number of significant games against them lately and this is another one since the winner will have the inside track on the number two seed,” said San Mig Coffee coach Tim Cone.

“We’ve got a healthy lineup for the first time in a long time against them, so we’ll see if that can give us an edge this time.”

San Mig Coffee is coming off an 89-80 win against Air 21 to bounce back from a 29-point defeat at the hands of the Tropang Texters.

The Elasto Painters of coach Yeng Guiao are coming off a 97-90 loss to the Kings to slide to third spot.

“This is our most important game. This will determine our future this conference. If we win, we’re still in the hunt for the top two,” said Guiao.

In the opener, Ginebra hopes to stay in the top four with a win against the slumping Energy Colas.

The Kings are in solo fourth place with a 7-5 win-loss mark while Barako Bull, at 3-9, must win its last two matches to stay on track for at least a playoff for the No. 8 spot.

“Maganda at nananalo kami but we still cannot let our guard down,” said Ginebra coach Siot Tanquingcen. “Barako Bull’s fighting for their life so all out sila. We have to keep our concentration.”

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'It was a hard decision', said Tanquingcen after benching Caguioa

Barangay Ginebra San Miguel pulled off another trademark come-from-behind win over Rain or Shine Sunday night, but this time, Mark Caguioa watched his team do it from the bench.

After the game, coach Siot Tanquingcen explained his decision to take out the reigning Most Valuable Player in the crucial stretches of the fourth quarter, when the Gin Kings completed its comeback from a 17-point deficit.



“He was really not his usual self tonight,” said Tanquingcen. “Even yung mga free throws niya, nag-struggle siya. He’s a good free throw shooter, pero tonight, sumablay siya ng dalawang sunod.”

Tanquingcen added that it wasn’t an easy choice, especially with how Caguioa has carried the team over the past few games.




“It was a hard decision. In fact, we were debating on it with the coaching staff,” said Tanquingcen.

“Mahirap dahil siya yung tipo ng tao na gusto mong kasama mo sa giyera. But he was struggling. Yung ibang tira niya was even short and he was not in his usual element.”

Caguioa shots just 6-of-22 from the field and 4-of-9 from the foul line. Despite struggling with his touch, Caguioa still managed to score 18 points, the second-most for the team.
-Rey Joble, InterAKTV

barangay ginebra gin kings , mark caguioa , robert jaworski , siot tanquingcen

Ginebra unleashed its never-say-die spirit and turned back Rain or Shine

Barangay Ginebra San Miguel unleashed its never-say-die spirit and turned back Rain or Shine, 97-90, to extend its winning streak to four games in the 2013 PBA Philippine Cup Sunday at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.

The Gin Kings crawled back from a 17-point deficit midway through the third quarter, holding the Elasto Painters to just one field goal in the final 2:33 to join Meralco in fourth place with a 6-5 win-loss mark.

LA Tenorio dished out a near triple-double performance with 20 points, seven rebounds and 10 assists and piloted Ginebra’s rally in the fourth quarter.


Mark Caguioa added 18 points, though he was not around when the Kings made the run. Rookie Chris Ellis chipped in 15 points and punctuated their team’s victory with a reverse windmill dunk that pegged the final score.

“We came out really flat. The good thing, we stuck together and got through this one,” said Ginebra coach Siot Tanquingcen, who also drew 12 points from Billy Mamaril.

“We really struggled. Other people just stepped up and it’s a good indication for our team.”

Jayjay Helterbrand came off the bench and contributed six points, seven rebounds and five assists while rookie Yousef Taha also provided quality minutes in the fourth period with his hustle plays on defense.

Rain or Shine, which dropped to third place with a 8-4 mark, led by 15 at the half, 57-42, and was still in control after TY Tang hit a triple to start the final quarter for a 78-69 lead.

But Tenorio anchored a momentum-swinging 14-8 exchange he capped with a three-pointer to close in at 86-83 with 2:53 remaining.

Jeff Chan push the Rain or Shine to five points, 88-83, with a running jumper with 2:33 left in the game. But the Gin Kings unloaded 10-0 blast to take a 93-88 lead with just 16.7 seconds left.

JR Quinahan ended Rain or Shine’s drought with an undergoal stab but time was not on their side, allowing Ginebra to pull off another escape act.

Jervy Cruz led the Elasto Painters with 17 points and 12 rebounds and was 13-of-13 from the free throw line. Larry Rodriguez added 14 points, while rookie Chris Tiu returned from injury and contributed eight.

The scores:

GINEBRA 97 – Tenorio 20, Caguioa 18, Ellis 15, Mamaril 12, Wilson 9, Maierhofer 7, Helterbrand 6, Taha 4, Espiritu 2, Raymundo 2, Hatfield 2, Labagala 0.

RAIN OR SHINE 90 – Cruz 17, Rodriguez 14, Tang 12, Chan 11, Quinahan 10, Tiu 8, Arana 8, Belga 7, Matias 3, Norwood 0.

Quarters: 20-33, 42-57, 69-75, 97-90
-InterAKTV

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Petron Blaze eyes its second straight win on Global Port , Alaska tries to get back on track against Ginebra

Petron Blaze eyes its second straight win against a lowly opponent while Alaska tries to get back on track as the 2013 PBA Philippine Cup resumes on Sunday at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.

The Boosters battle tail-ender GlobalPort at 4:15 p.m. while the struggling Aces hope to put an end to a three-game losing streak when they take on Barangay Ginebra San Miguel in a 6:30 p.m. encounter.

Petron ended its own slump with a 96-86 win over Rain or Shine and coach Olsen Racela hopes it will lead to a winning streak.

“I hope it’s a start because this will gonna be a crucial stretch for us. Kailangan naming ma-sustain ito,” said Racela, whose team is holding a 4-6 win-loss mark.

They are up against a 1-8 Batang Pier who are in danger of becoming the first team to be booted out of the season-opening conference.

GlobalPort needs to sweep its last five games to have a shot for a spot in the next round.

In the main game, Alaska seeks to put an end to its three-game losing streak against the Kings, who have won two games in a row after dropping five straight.

“Every game is crucial for all teams at this point. It really helps that we won early so we are still in the middle of the standings despite tough losses,” said Aces head coach Luigi Trillo whose team is coming off a 104-103 loss to Air 21.

“Hopefully we get back on track. Ginebra looks like a potent team again.”

Alaska prevailed in their first meeting, 87-69, last October 28 and Gin Kings coach Siot Tanquingcen hopes they can avenge that defeat.

“Though struggling, Alaska is a very tough team to play. They’re 2 to 3 deep in each position,” said Tanquingcen. “We have to take care of the ball better. Last time we played them, we gave up 25 turnover points to them.”

Ginebra is holding a 4-5 win-loss mark.
-interAKTV

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Alaska winning streak to fourth, deals Ginebra fourth streak loss

Alaska delivered another ace of a game that led to one more Barangay Ginebra San Miguel checkmate.

The Aces stretched their winning streak to four matches after pulling off a masterful 87-69 victory against the skidding Gin Kings to grab a share of second spot in the 2013 PBA Philippine Cup on Sunday at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.

Rookie Calvin Abueva fell a rebound short of notching his third straight double-double performance, but it was enough to lift Alaska to its fourth straight win to join Rain or Shine at the No. 2 spot with a 4-2 win-loss mark.

For Ginebra, it was the team’s fourth loss in a row after a 2-0 start, leaving them sliding deeper in the team standings.

“I think we’re lucky because Ginebra is not on its best now and probably with chemistry issue right now,” said Aces coach Luigi Trillo, who drew 19 points and nine rebounds from Abueva.

“But I thought the bottom line [was] in the first quarter Ginebra had 22, 16 in the second, 14 in the third and 17 in the fourth. Ginebra is a team that runs and it’s their strength. I think our defense did it today.”

Jvee Casio chipped in 16 points for the Aces while Cyrus Baguio netted 12. RJ Jazul and Sonny Thoss contributed 12 apiece for Alaska, which led the game from start to finish.

Dylan Ababou had 14 points in his first game back with Ginebra this season, but others failed to contribute for the Kings who shot miserably from the field (22-of-61).

Ababou’s three-pointer put Ginebra within three points, 51-48, in the third quarter. But an 11-0 explosion by the Aces capped by Abueva’s jumper pushed their lead back to 62-48, with 2:02 remaining in the period.

The lead ballooned to as high as 20 points, 81-61, after Baguio and Casio banged in a three-pointer each in a run that put the game away, silencing the dominant pro-Ginebra crowd.

It was Alaska’s first four-game winning streak since the Aces swept Ginebra in the 2009-10 Philippine Cup semifinals under former coach Tim Cone. That was also the last time the Kings have lost four in a row.

“It’s nice to win four in a row. The last time we did this was coach Tim’s time,” said Trillo who was then one of the assistants of Cone.

The scores:

ALASKA 87 – Abueva 19, Casio 16, Baguio 14, Jazul 12, Thoss 12,Hontiveros 5, Espinas 4, Baracael 2, Dela Cruz 2, Reyes 1, Eman 0.

GINEBRA 69 – Ababou 14, Caguioa 12, Tenorio 10, Maierhofer 7, Mamaril 6, Cortez 6, Raymundo 5, Ellis 4, Wilson 3, Jensen 2, Helterbrand 0.

Quarters: 25-22, 46-38, 64-52, 87-69

-InterAKTV

alaska aces , barangay ginebra gin kings , calvin abueva

Beast performance from Calvin Abueva as it drubbed Barangay Ginebra

ALASKA rode another beast of a performance from Calvin Abueva as it drubbed Barangay Ginebra, 87-69, to remain unbeaten since the super rookie joined them in the PBA Philippine Cup at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum on Sunday night.

Abueva, the second overall pick in this year’s Draft, barely missed on a third successive double-double as he had a game-high 19 points and nine rebounds on top of three assists and one steal for the Aces, who extended their winning streak to four games after starting the conference with two losses.

Abueva provided the spark off the bench right in the first period where he pumped in nine markers to give his team the lead which they protected throughout.

It was not just an one-man show, however, as JV Casio, Cyrus Baguio, RJ Jazul, and Sonny Thoss all delivered significant numbers for the Aces, who dealt the Kings their third straight loss.

In just his first game back from an injury, Dylan Ababou led the Kings with 14 points, while LA Tenorio added 10 in his first game against his former squad.
-@KarloSacamos, Spin

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