PBA: Powerade notches second in a row, drops TNT to 1-3

(Updated 7:35pm) Gary David vowed to adjust to the way the Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters were defending him in the first half. Less than four minutes into the third quarter, he made good on his promise.

David exploded for three triples in a row, giving his Powerade Tigers the lead for good, on route to a 110-105 win, his side's second in a row, Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, in the PBA Governor's Cup.


The Tropang Texters seemed to be in control throughout the first half, building a 10-point lead off a timeout at the 2:09 mark of the second period, 49-39, off four straight charities by import Paul Harris.

It was nine early in the third, 53-44, after Ranidel De Ocampo opened the period with a basket, but Powerade's foreign player Omar Sneed answered with an and-one play and a second-chance score, slicing the deficit to four, 53-49.

David discovered his stroke from downtown a few plays later, and the Tigers never trailed again.

Seven unanswered by David, Rabeh Al-Hussaini and JV Casio gave them their largest lead near the end of the third, 75-63, but Talk 'N Text was not about to go away quietly.

At the dawn of the last quarter, a barrage by Kelly Williams and Jimmy Alapag triggered a 12-5 run that got them to within five, until Rey Guevarra jammed home a dunk to kill their momentum, 87-80.

The Texters chopped the Tigers' advantage several times to four, the last time being on three straight makes by Harris, 104-100, a little over a minute left, but a questionable foul by Kelly Williams sent David to the line where he was nothing but clutch, 106-100.

A technical foul on TNT head coach Chot Reyes made it a three-possession ball game as he protested the call, and his side was then done in for good when the normally sure-sighted Larry Fonacier missed the middle of three free throws.


After a quiet scoring outing in his first game with the Tigers, Omar Sneed exploded for a 32 point, 23 rebound game, leading all players in scoring.

"How could you have no confidence when you have a teammate like Omar [Sneed]?" asked Powerade head coach Bo Perasol. "He'll give you a feeling that you can beat any team out there."

Gary David meanwhile tallied 28, extending his streak of 20 point or more games to 18. New acquisitions Guevarra and Al-Hussaini continued to show their worth, combining for 21 points and seven boards.

"It was the bench players, [Rudy] Lingganay, [Rabeh] Al-Hussaini, [Rey] Guevarra, [and] Josh Vanlandingham in the third. They gave precious moments to our starters on the bench," said Perasol of his reserves.

Paul Harris got 22 markers to lead Talk 'N Text, plus eight rebounds, four assists and three steals, but his shooting was inconsistent all-night long, as he finished 7-of-16 from the field, and 8-of-18 from the foul line.

Jimmy Alapag added 17 and eight assists, and Ali Peek registered a double-double of 16 points and 10 boards, but the Texters went into a funk once Ranidel De Ocampo was slapped with his sixth personal, 6:47 left in the affair. He would exit with 15 points.

The Tigers ruled the boards 61 to 47, doubling Talk 'N Text's nine offensive rebounds, and the result was nine additional shot attempts from the field.

Powerade evened their record at 2-2, while Talk 'N Text tumbled to 1-3, putting them in a dire position given the short nine-game elimination round. - GMA News


The scores:

Powerade 110 - Sneed 32, David 28, Guevarra 11, Al-Hussaini 10, Casio 8, Lingganay 7, Salvador 6, Anthony 4, Vanlandingham 2, Antonio 2, Tugade 0.

Talk 'N Text 105 - Harris 22, Alapag 17, Peek 16, De Ocampo 15, Williams 13, Fonacier 11, Gamalinda 5, Aguilar 2, Dillinger 2, Aban 2, Raymundo 0, Alvarez 0.

Quarter scoring: 20-25, 44-51, 78-68, 110-105