Friday, March 24, 2006

Air21 109, Brgy Ginebra 98

Renren Ritualo hit four three pointers in the fourth quarter while Mark Telan recorded a double-double as Air21 knocks off Barangay Ginebra 109-98 in the second game of the 2006 Gran Matador PBA Philippine Cup at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City.

Trailing 74-82 entering the final frame, Telan scored key baskets during their comeback while Ritualo's triples helped Air21 pull away from a late-Ginebra rally in the final four minutes.

Telan scored 22 points and 10 rebounds as Air21 improved its record to 2-3 on the conference.

Brgy. Ginebra got a boost in the third quarter with Jayjay Helterbrand's 14-point third quarter output as the Kings scored 32 points in the period.

Eric Menk recorded 12 points for Ginebra in the first half, his best game of the conference after three sub-par games. Still, Barangay Ginebra could not avoid losing their third straight game in the tournament to drop its win-loss slate at 2-3.

Alaska 86, Talk N Text 79

Nic Belasco waxed hot in the first half while Mike Cortez closed out Alaska's 86-79 victory over Talk N Text in the 2006 Gran Matador PBA Philippine Cup at the Cuneta Astrodome.

Belasco recorded 20 points in the first half to finish with 26 points for the Aces while Cortez erased a slim 77-79 deficit in the final three minutes by draining two clutch treys to put the Aces for good.

Cortez finished with 20 points and seven assists as Alaska improves to 3-2 win-loss card.

Talk N Text got double-digit games from Mark Cardona and John Ferriols but it wasn't enough for the Phone Pals to suffer their third defeat in four games in the conference.

Mga laman ng diyaryo

Tribune
POC to lobby new cage group with Fiba in Korea
Early registration for Best caging
Kings, Express eye big rebound

Philippine Star
POC, stakeholders eye talks with Baumann
Momentum on side of Pals, Aces
Make no mistake, they’re no fancy Jewels
NBA exhibition game in Manila?
NBA legends tour a sure hit

Manila Bulletin
Pals discover defense is key
POC, stakeholders to meet FIBA chief

Philippine Daily Inquirer
Off-form Gin Kings attempt to snap slide
Paras suits up for UP again
Clean Living : BAP should stop fighting a 'lost cause'

Malaya
Aces test resolve of Phone Pals

Manila Standard
POC to plead case with Fiba
Glimmer of hope
Ginebra 5, Air21 clash

Manila Times
Peping to tackle cage
row with IOC, FIBA chiefs

Aces ready for tough fight
against Phone Pals today

Rizal named ‘NC’ venue

PBA Game Advancer

Barangay Ginebra looks to recover from two lopsided losses as it takes on slumping Air21 Express tonight as the 2006 Gran Matador PBA Philippine Cup resumes at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City.

The Kings are coming off a disappointing 73-56 defeat at the hands of sister team Purefoods Chunkee Giants last Wednesday. A week ago, San Miguel handed the then-undefeated Kings a 77-59.

While Mark Caguioa continues to lead the Kings in the offense, a major concern lies on 2004-2005 MVP Eric Menk, who has been hobbled by an ankle sprain and had showed three sub-par performances in the tournament. Rommel Adducul has been struggling as well in doing double-duty at the pivot position with Andy Seigle's season-ending injury.

Air21, meanwhile, is currently holding a 1-3 win-loss and tied with Sta Lucia for last place in the team standings. The worst part of it is that key scorer Renren Ritualo is nursing an injury, but it seems that he will play for tonight's crucial encounter.

After defeating Talk N Text on March 12, the Express have lost their last two games, including a heart-breaking 102-100 squeker against Sta Lucia last Friday.

Meanwhile, Talk N Text looks to carry on their morale-boosting win in Hong Kong in the first game against the Alaska Aces at 4:40 PM.

The Phone Pals defeated Purefoods 88-66 in the former British colony to tally their first win of the tournament. Jimmy Alapag, Asi Taulava, Willie Miller and seldom-used Chris Cantonjos played huge for the Derrick Pumaren-led squad.

Alaska, 2-2 so far in the tournament, won convincingly against Air21 via a 99-85 win and is looking for solid games from Tony Dela Cruz, Nic Belasco, Mike Cortez, among others.