PBA: Aces lean on defense as Alaska swallows Ginebra to take Game One 

(Updated 10:22pm) The Alaska Aces pounded Barangay Ginebra San Miguel into submission, 87-70, in game one of the PBA Commissioner's Cup finals on Wednesday at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.

The Aces put on a masterful performance on the defensive end, as well-timed rotations cut off Vernon Macklin's inside presence and prevented Ginebra from generating any momentum early on. Ginebra's six-point output in the first period was an all-time low for points scored in an opening quarter in a PBA game, and also ranked as third-lowest in terms of points scored in a quarter in any PBA Finals game.

[Review the play-by-play action of this game here]

Luigi Trillo's squad led by as much as 30 points after an 8-0 run immediately after hafltime and didn't let up, while Alfrancis Chua went digging deep into his bench as early as midway through the second quarter. Ginebra's reserves gave their side a boost though, going on an unexpected 17-7 swing to end the third, 67-48.

Ginebra's starters came back in the final period and went on a 20-12 grind to get within 11 points, 79-68, with under three minutes to play, but good execution on the Aces' part led to Sonny Thoss putting his foot down, scoring eight in a final 10-2 sequence to seize momentum in the best-of-five series.

The Aces had six players in double figures, led by RJ Jazul's 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field. IMport Robert Dozier had a double-double with 14 points, 22 rebounds and three blocks, while Sonny Thoss added 12 points and eight rebounds. Calvin Abueva, JVee Casio and Cyrus Baguio chipped in 10 points each, with Casio hauling in seven rebounds and combining for 14 assists with the other two players.

"The last time we played them [during the elimination round] we had a 16-point lead that evaporated," said Alaska head coach Luigi Trillo, praising his team for their composure in the second half.

"I thought we did a good job in the second half in focusing in," said Trillo, noting that his team has a tendency to get derailed when officiating calls don't go their way. He commended his players, especially Gabby Espinas, for keeping things cool on the floor. "I told them I'd do the job of talking to the referees. There were a lot of hard fouls on Calvin [Abueva] and Robert [Dozier]."

Trillo also stressed that this series would be a battle of which team can better impose their style of play on the game. "They're gonna come out with adjustments. I think we did a fairly good job on Vernon [Macklin]. I thought we were able to control him, [although] you can't stop him. I thought LA struggled a little bit, and we were lucky.

"We need to play to our identity. They play a lot of run and gun and draw energy from the crowd when they do things a certain way. But we gave them six points in the first quarter, and that's our identity," he said. "We knew it'd be physical, it'd be borderline hurt, but our guys have to understand that and get back up again."

Game two will be played on Friday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Alaska looked unstoppable to start the game, from Jvee Casio's opening trey to three different Aces carving up Ginebra's interior. Meanwhile, Ginebra had nothing going for them and were stonewalled by Alaska's interior defense, 14-0.

Ginebra got their first bucket halfway through the quarter, a tip-in by Vernon Macklin. But on the other end, they were a step too slow chasing Alaska' shooters around the midrange area. RJ Jazul connected for seven points, including a last-gasp fadeaway along the left baseline to create a 28-6 margin after the first quarter.

Mark Caguioa checked into play early in the second quarter to lift his team's offense and flagging spirits, but he wasn't much of a factor, quickly picking up three personal fouls while Macklin and Kerby Raymundo scored off second-chance looks. Meanwhile, the Aces were able to get out on the break and knock down shots, including a transition triple by Jazul, 38-13, with five minutes to play.

A rarely seen Ginebra line-up featuring Rico Maierhofer and Rob Labagala triggered a brief 9-2 run, but the Aces quelled it in the final minute as Casio forced a turnover for a solitary lay-up, while Cyrus Baguio and Gabby Espinas piled it on from the line, making it 46-24 at the break.

Ginebra shot 2-of-24 in the first quarter to put up a 9-of-45 mark at halftime (20 percent). In contrast, the Aces were 16-of-30 (53.3 percent). Ginebra was also 1-of-16 from long range (6.3 percent) while Alaska was a steady 4-of-9 (44.4 percent).

Alaska went back to the grind when play resumed, as Casio fed cutters to the basket for eight unanswered points to put them up by 30, 54-24, just two minutes into the third. Ginebra appeared ready to give a bit more of a fight though, countering with seven straight of their own. However, they couldn't get into a rhythm as Alaska methodically reset their plays after offensive rebounds, and another Casio triple capped six unanswered for the Aces, 60-31.

Slowly, Alfrancis Chua shut down his show, as his second-string backcourt of JJ Helterbrand and Josh Urbiztondo anchored an odd mix of frontcourt players playing prominent minutes in the period. Meanwhile, Alaska stuck to their key rotation guys, resting only Robert Dozier in the last four minutes.

But against all expectations, this ragtag Ginebra group mounted a 17-5 rally, punctuated by a Helterbrand three-pointer, followed by a free throw after a technical foul on Alaska assistant Topex Robinson with a minute to play. Ginebra, however, wouldn't connect from deep anew, and Calvin Abueva had the final say of the quarter to give his team a 67-48 lead.

Chua reinstated his starters early in the fourth. While Raymundo took a couple of midrange jumpers, Jazul's three-point shooting brought the lead back to 25, 75-52. LA Tenorio and Macklin weren't through, as the duo conspired for 14 points in a 16-4 run to make it a 79-68 game with under three minutes to play.

The Aces looked to milk the clock on their possessions, and fed Sonny Thoss along the baseline for bail-out shots. The center delivered and put his stamp on a 10-2 sequence until the final buzzer sounded.

Alaska wound up shooting 7-of-17 from long range (41 percent) for 32-of-70 overall (45.7 percent), while Ginebra was 3-of-27 from beyond the arc (11.1 percent) to contribute to a 26-of-84 mark (31 percent).

Ginebra led in second chance points (16-4), turnover points (18-14) and by a hair in rebounding (52-51, including 20-10 offensive). However, Alaska outmatched them in assists (25-13) and fast break points (12-7).

Vernon Macklin was limited to 16 points and 14 rebounds on 6-of-9 shooting from the floor. LA Tenorio added 14 points and six rebounds despite a 4-of-18 outing. - RAF, GMA News


The scores:

ALASKA 87 - Jazul 16, Dozier 14, Thoss 12, Abueva 10, Casio 10, Baguio 10, Espinas 9, Dela Cruz 4, Hontiveros 2, Belasco 0.

GINEBRA 70 - Macklin 16, Tenorio 14, Raymundo 9, Helterbrand 7, Espiritu 6, Labagala 4, Urbiztondo 4, Maierhofer 4, Mamaril 2, Caguioa 2, Ellis 1, Baracael 1, Wilson 0, Hatfield 0.

Quarters: 28-6, 46-24, 67-48, 87-70