PBA: Talk 'N Text uses balanced attack to deal Barako first loss

Talk 'N Text had six players in double figures as they defeated Barako, 80-75, on Friday at SMART-Araneta Coliseum.

We still have to get better. We had a good first half but I don't think we did a good in the second half," said Talk 'N Text coach Jong Uichico. "We just escaped with a win."

With the win, the Texters tied Barako's 3-1 record, with only Meralco and Purefoods besting them with perfect 4-0 records each.

Import Richard Howell only had 11 points, but added 18 rebounds, four assists and two steals with only one turnover. Jayson Castro led the scoring with 16 points while Matt Ganuelas-Rosser had 15 markers, seven boards and two assists. Larry Fonacier rounded up the starters in double figures with 10 points.

Willie Miller had another productive outing, scoring 13, while Ranidel De Ocampo added 11.

Barako actually had a better shooting percentage, converting on almost 41 percent to TNT's 36 percent. The Texters made up for it by hitting 11 treys, though, while limiting Barako to just three.

Solomon Alabi had 21 points, 24 rebounds, and five blocked shots. Starters RR Garcia and JC Intal were limited to eight and seven points, respectively, while Chico Lanete only had five off a 2 of 8 shooting clip. Carlo Lastimosa had 16 points in 16 minutes off the bench, while Jake Pascual scored 50 percent from the field for 12 markers. — Renee Fopalan/JST, GMA News