PBA: Dunigan's defense does it as Express defeat Casio-less Aces

Michael Dunigan had 25 points, 14 boards and five blocks, with two coming in the final three minutes, as the Air21 Express dealt league-leaders Alaska Aces a 74-68 defeat on Friday at the Ynares Center in Antipolo. "First back-to-back win for us. We really came here prepared", said Air21 head coach Franz Pumaren. "I guess we played good defense. We held them down right from the start." The Express improved to 3-5, while the Aces saw their lead at the top of the standings shrink to a win over the Petron Blaze Boosters and the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, with a 6-2 card. Both teams struggled to find their offense in the first, with Alaska getting a slight upper hand, establishing a 6-2 advantage at the 7:17 mark. A KG Canaleta trey cut the lead to one with 5:31 on the clock, before the Aces went on a 7-0 run, punctuated by a Gabby Espinas conversion off a Calvin Abueva dish, 15-5. A John Wilson short stab stopped the bleeding for Air21, before Bonbon Custodio pushed for two, 15-9. The Express ended the period with five more points, as Wilson hit a trey while Menor converted on a drive to cut Alaska's lead to one, 15-14, heading to the second. An Abueva and-one started the second for Alaska, while Custodio converted on another at the other end. Dondon Hontiveros rung in a three, before a Michael Dunigan free throw and an Ogie Menor basket had Air 21 surging ahead, 22-21. The back-and-forth continued, before Renren Ritualo and Mark Isip built a four-point spread at the 4:17 mark. With 3:27 remaining, Dunigan and Robert Dozier figured in a scuffle, resulting in the latter getting his third  foul. With Dozier sitting down, Dunigan exploited the Alaska big men in the shaded area, scoring on free throws to give the Express a 10-point lead with 12 seconds remaining. Alaska would have the final basket of the quarter, though, with Espinas ringing in one to cut the lead to eight, 40-32. A Mike Cortez three followed by a Dunigan jumper put Air21 ahead by 13 at the 10:37 mark. But midway through the third, Dozier's aggressiveness started to pay off. Alaska's import scored inside to cut the lead to 11, before his and Raffy Reyes' free throws sliced it further to six, 53-47, at the 2:23 mark. A Dunigan split from the line kept Air21 ahead, but a Reyes baseline jumper followed by an Espinas bucket ended the third with Alaska only down three, 54-51. Hontiveros started the fourth with a jumper off an Alaska screen to cut the lead to one, but four free throws from John Wilson kept Air21 ahead. A Dozier split from the line was followed by a Reyes fast break, before Hontiveros tied the game from the charity stripe at the 8:42 mark, 58-all. Canaleta kept the Express ahead with a trey, but Abueva had Alaska hovering around with a basket. After another Dunigan conversion, a Baguio trey tied the game anew at 63-all. The Express started to miss from beyond the arc, but a Dunigan offensive rebound led to two charities, 65-63. In the next play, Alaska would commit a 24-second shot clock violation, as Dunigan hit a tough turnaround over Dozier. A Dunigan block on Sonny Thoss led to a split from the line by Cortez, but RJ Jazul would convert on a three at the other end to keep Alaska in the game, 68-66, with 2:04 to go. The Express got lucky on the next play though, as they found Bitoy Omolon for a shotclock-beating three at the 1:36 mark, before Dunigan did it again on the defensive end, this time blocking Dozier's attempt. In the final minute, Air 21 would hit its free throws to secure its second straight win. - AMD, GMA News