PBA: Talk 'n Text triumphs over Purefoods, sets up finals clash with Rain or Shine

Jayson Castro scored 13 of his 33 points in the payoff period to lead the Talk 'n Text Tropang Texters to a 79-66 win and eliminate the Purefoods Star Hotshots on Saturday at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.

The Texters now prepare for a Commissioner's Cup finals series against the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters.

The Hotshots looked like they were going to equalize the series, tallying 20 points in the second quarter to erect a 10-point lead at the half, 38-28. The Texters responded via Castro in the third, as the guard paced his team's offense to take the a two-point lead at the 6:35 mark, 40-38.

TNT out-scored Purefoods 17-10 in the third, but the Hotshots managed to get a pair of baskets from PJ Simon and Rafi Reavis to regain a three-point edge heading into the final period, 48-45.

An Ivan Johnson and-one tied the game with seven minutes left, before the TNT import pulled up for a long bomb and the lead, 62-59.

Purefoods struggled to respond, while eight straight points from Castro made it a double-digit lead with 2:19 left, 74-63. Talk 'n Text led by as much as 16 points, as Ranidel De Ocampo and Jay Washington conversions answered misses from James Yap, Marc Pingris and Joe Devance in the final two minutes.

Ivan Johnson had 15 points and 15 rebounds, while Ranidel De Ocampo and Jay Washington had 12 each. Denzel Bowles led Purefoods with 14 points but was limited to eight rebounds. He also just shot 20 percent from the field, hitting only three of 15 attempts.

Joe Devance had 10 points, while Mark Pingris had eight. James Yap had a bad shooting night, hitting just one of eight for two points. Mark Barroca came off the bench for 12 points, but PJ Simon was limited to just six. - GMA News