Texters trip Gin Kings, clinch playoff edge

Talk ‘N Text clinched the second twice-to-beat edge in the playoffs, but had to survive a big Barangay Ginebra comeback in a 109-102 win Friday night in the PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum. Ali Peek had another monster game for the Tropang Texters, pumping in 11 points in the payoff period, including eight in a row as he carried the scoring load for the team at the height of the Kings’ searing fourth quarter rally. The burly 6-foot-6 Fil-Am finished with 25 points and had nine rebounds. Jimmy Alapag then took over from Peek, scoring two big three-pointers and crucial free throws down the stretch to finally silence Ginebra and their legions of fans at the Big Dome. Alapag, who had a mild altercation with Ronald Tubid in the first half, went 10-of-11 from the foul line to finish with 32 points in leading Talk ‘N Text to the all-important win. Their fourth straight victory carried the Tropang Texters to solo second place at 10-3. They can even finish the eliminations as the top-seeded team going into the quarterfinals should they beat Air21 in their final game on Sunday and tie San Miguel. The Beermen are currently alone on top with an 11-3 card — as the only other team to have earned a twice-to-beat edge in the playoffs. “There was a lot of stress going into this game, but we’re more relaxed now," said Peek, who scored 23 points or more for the third straight game. The Kings ended the eliminations with a 9-4 record and will have to go through a best-of-three series in the next round. But they almost came close to pulling off a come-from behind win in this highly-emotional, highly-physical game, rallying back from as much as a 50-63 deficit in the third quarter and tying the count several times, the last at 82-all on Willie Miller’s basket with 6:22 to play. However, Peek countered with two free throws, and then Alapag went on a zone. The Talk `N Text guard scored the team’s next eight points – six of them from three-point range – to stretch the lead again to 92-86 with 3:12 remaining. Jason Castro’s completed steal off Miller then made it an eight-point game for the Tropang Texters. Miller finished with 22 points for the Kings and led the team back with his timely outside shooting. His final three-pointer for the night had Ginebra threatening for the last time at 100-104 in the final 29 seconds. Alapag then scored three straight points for the Tropang Texters to seal the win. Billy Mamaril and Mark Caguioa had 14 each for the Kings, who also got 13 from Mike Cortez. Cortez also had a physical confrontation with Jason Castro early in the fourth, adding further drama to the emotionally-charged match that also saw Harvey Carey and Willie Wilson being called for a double foul in the third period following a shoving incident in front of the Talk `N Text basket. – JVP/KY, GMANews.TV