Filtered By: Sports
Sports

PBA: B-MEG survives late Powerade rally, finishes elims 6-3


(Updated, 8:45am) The Powerade Tigers came right up to the edge of a comeback, but could not complete the feat, coming unglued in the last few seconds, as the B-MEG Llamados got revenge on their All-Filipino Cup tormentors, 96-94, Sunday at the Araneta Coliseum, in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup.   The Tigers held the Llamados to just a single field goal in the last 4:17 of the game, after a Marc Pingris bucket off a James Yap assist made it 92-81. Powerade responded with a furious 8-0 blast that cut their deficit to 92-89, six of that eight coming from Gary David, before Denzel Bowles finally woke up the slumbering Llamados offense, 94-89, 1:34 remaining.   A leaner by Jvee Casio got it back to a three-point game, 94-91, and then off a Bowles miss, Marcio Lassiter scored in transition, slicing the difference to a solitary point, 94-93, 46.2 seconds left.   Bowles was offline once more, but so was David on the other end of the court. But the Casio snagged the long rebound, and with just 18.6 left on the clock, Powerade sued for time, in the hopes of setting up the last shot.   But on the set play, Casio’s pass got picked off, and the Tigers were forced to foul Josh Urbiztondo with 10.7 seconds left. The point guard made both charities, 96-93, but fate seemed to favor overtime, as David was hit by Bowles on his three-point attempt, sending the sure-handed sniper to the line.   Though he strode up to the stripe having made 10 for 11 charities at that point, David missed the first attempt, forcing Powerade to call timeout in order to change tactics. He made the second, and then missed the third, opening up the possibility of a Powerade offensive board and score to send the game into overtime, but B-MEG fought them for the loose ball, killing enough clock to close the game with them on top. "They were sitting in a zone [in the fourth quarter] to make us do jump shots," Llamados head coach Tim Cone said after the game, explaining why his squad gave up the late run. "It's easy to lose leads in this league [because] it's a momentum type of league. They hit tough shots to get back in the game."   The two sides went back-and-forth early on, building a 46-43 score with B-MEG ahead at the halftime break. It was at that point that James Yap came alive, as the Llamados’ scoring machine got going off two charities, hitting three triples in a row at one point, and helping erect a lead as high as 14 points, 73-59. Persistent play by Powerade kept chipping away at the lead though in the final period, leading up to the game’s frenzied final moments.   Llamados import Denzel Bowles finished with 29 points, 18 rebounds and five blocks. Urbiztondo added 15 points, 11 in the first half, and dished out seven dimes, while James Yap shook off an ankle injury to add 15 of his own. The team was without big man Joe Devance, who suffered an MCL tear against Rain or Shine.   Powerade got 25 from Gary David, who became the 64th player to score at least 5000 points, on two fourth quarter free throws. Rookies Marcio Lassiter and Jvee Casio combined for 25 points. Tigers import Dwayne Jones was vastly overplayed by Bowles, producing just 11 points and 14 rebonds, while turning the ball over five times.    The win was sweet revenge for the Llamados, as it was the Tigers who ousted them last conference in the quarterfinals, despite B-MEG’s position as the over-all number one seed. Powerade even went the distance, making it to the Finals, before bowing to the Talk ‘N Text Tropang Texters.   Making the victory that much sweeter is the possibility of the Llamados attaining a first round bye in the playoffs, depending on what happens with the Barangay Ginebra Kings and the Texters, thanks to their 6-3 record. In the worst case scenario, B-MEG would figure in a playoff for the automatic semis slot versus Ginebra.   The Tigers meanwhile, find themselves at 4-5, their post-season fate in the hands of the other teams. - AMD, GMA News   The scores: B-MEG 96 - Bowles 29, Urbiztondo 15, Yap 15, Pingris 12, Simon 7, Intal 6, Reavis 4, De Ocampo 4, Barroca 2, Villanueva 2. POWERADE 94 - David 25, Lassiter 17, Jones 11, Anthony 11, Kramer 9, Casio 8, Antonio 5, Lingganay 3, Allera 2, Cruz 2, Adducul 1, Vanlandingham 0. Quarter scoring: 24-21, 46-43, 73-63, 96-94
LOADING CONTENT