PBA: Talk ‘N Text books third win, moves up in standings

MANILA, Philippines – Talk ‘N Text used a closing 9-3 run to finally silence Coca-Cola and the Tropang Texters went home with a 90-82 victory in the KFC PBA Philippine Cup Sunday at the Araneta Coliseum. The win was the third straight for Talk ‘N Text improving their record to an 8-6 mark to remain within striking distance with league-leading Alaska’s 10-4 card and the 9-6 slates of San Miguel and Rain or Shine from second to third spots Two of the Tropang Texters’ wins was an 85-80 decision against the second-running San Miguel Beermen in Singapore last week and a 104-82 demolition of the Realtors on November 26. The Tigers suffered their third straight setback that could further dampen their bid of earning a quarterfinal spot. Enjoying an 81-69 lead, after a Jason Castro triple with 8:04 left in the clock, Talk ‘N Text encountered a dry spell in their offense allowing the Tigers to threaten in the final three minutes of the fourth quarter. The Tigers racked up eight straight points in that stretch to come to within four, 81-77, on an Asi Taulava inside incursion time down to 3:21. That was the closest Coke could get as TNT pushed the right buttons in the crucial stage of the match with Ali Peek’s split free throws starting off a closing 9-3 run. Mark Cardona sank his patented hook shot after a Mark Telan turnover at the other end then Jimmy Alapag buried a three-pointer for an 87-79 count, 2:10 left. Cardona put the finishing touches on TNT’s win hitting another from downtown for a 90-80 spread 1:13 left. Cardona paced the Tropang Texters with 29 points behind a 12-24 shooting from the field to go with his seven rebounds while rookie Jason Castro scored a conference-high 20 points added five rebounds and six assists to provide support. Peek finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds while Jimmy Alapag had 10 markers and six assists. Harvey Carey was limited to four points but grabbed 13 rebounds. The Tigers’ loss put to waste Mark Macapagal’s season-high 31 points and 8-of-11 shooting from beyond the arc. Taulava was a rebounding machine hauling down 22 boards aside from scoring 13 markers and issuing five assists. Telan and Ronjay Buenafe contributed 10 each. In the second game, Ranidel De Ocampo scattered 23 points and collared nine rebounds to help the Air21 Express to a 97-88 win over defending Philippine Cup champion Sta. Lucia Realtors. De Ocampo also dished out seven assists as the Express improved to 8-7 while dealing the Realtors their eighth loss in 15 games. – GMANews.TV