PBA: Talk 'N Text goes up 2-0 on Rain or Shine in the semis as both teams finish importless

(Updated 10:18pm) The Talk ’N Text Tropang Texters made it 12 straight wins in a row, and are just one more victory away from entering the finals of the 2014 PBA Commissioner’s Cup, after besting the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, 94-87, Wednesday at the Cuneta Astrodome.

TNT won game one 91-85 on Monday, in the best-of-five series. They can punch their ticket to the Finals come Friday, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

The Texters overcame an initial deficit with Howell’s dominant inside play, nabbing an and-one to kickstart a 14-2 run. The Elasto Painters fell behind, 21-17, as their three-pointers didn’t find their mark in the first quarter.

Talk ’N Text continued rolling, as Jimmy Alapag drained back-to-back triples in transition to take a 31-20 lead early in the second period. Chism replied with a triple of his own to ignite Rain or Shine’s rally.

The Elasto Painters however had to soldier on without Chism, who hurt his left knee during an awkward fall. They did so, scoring multiple times off the Texters’ turnovers. Prior to his exit, Chism and Ryan Araña combined for 13 during a 15-3 span. However, Jayson Castro steadied Talk ’N Text as the half wound down, drawing fouls in the paint to reestablish a 43-38 lead.

Chism left the game with 5:11 left in the second due to a suspected MCL sprain, making him the third Rain or Shine player to join the injured list in these playoffs. Jervy Cruz and Chris Tiu are also missing from the lineup, incidentally, due to minor MCL injuries.

Talk ’N Text’s lead swelled to 10 points, 56-46, as they took the ball aggressively inside after the intermission. But Rain or Shine’s fortunes changed when Howell was benched after his fourth personal foul. Paul Lee, Raymond Almazan and Arana rammed an 18-4 run down the gut of the TNT defense in the last five minutes, but Alapag had other plans. The veteran splashed a trey with 33 seconds left, and Kelly Williams banked a turnaround jumper as the third quarter expired, to retain a 65-64 edge.

The All-Filipino play extended into the fourth as Howell fouled out at the 4:09 mark, allowing Rain or Shine continued to scrap for points inside to stay afloat against a fully engaged Castro and Ranidel De Ocampo down the stretch. With 3:36 left, Rain or Shine slashed the lead to three off a Beau Belga three-pointer, 87-84. They couldn’t complete the comeback though, as De Ocampo drilled a turnaround on the block, while Kelly Williams cut for a wide open layup, 91-85, with a minute and change left.

After forcing a stop, Lee cleaned up a transition miss by Gabe Norwood to make it a four-point affair, but Castro drew a foul on the other end with 17 ticks left and split the charities, 92-87. Rain or Shine called a timeout and drew up a lob play for Norwood, but a poor pass resulted in another turnover and charities for Larry Fonacier with nine seconds left, 94-87. - AMD, GMA NEWS


The scores:

TALK ’N TEXT 94 - De Ocampo 20, Castro 19, Williams 14, Alapag 14, Howell 12, Fonacier 7, Carey 4, Seigle 2, Canaleta 2, Aban 0, Reyes Jai 0, Reyes Ryan 0, Baclao 0

RAIN OR SHINE 87 - Belga 16, Arana 14, Almazan 12, Chism 10, Tang 10, Lee 10, Norwood 5, Rodriguez 4, Chan 2, Nuyles 2, Ibanes 2

Quarter-scoring: 21-17, 43-38, 65-64, 94-87