PBA finals: Aces beats Phone Pals, 86-82; series tied at 2-2

The Alaska Aces tied its best-of-seven finals series against the Talk 'N' Text Phone Pals after a hard-earned 86-82 victory in Game 4 of the 2007 Talk 'N Text-PBA Fiesta Conference at the Araneta Coliseum late Friday night. Former Letran Knights superstar Willie Miller, who before the start of the was named as the 2006-2007 PBA Most Valuable Player (MVP), proved why he's the best player in the pro league, scoring 10 of Alaska's last 15 points in the last two minutes of the final quarter, to nail the all-important victory for the Aces. With the Aces teetering on the brink of defeat, Miller rose to the occasion, knocking one basket after the other and making the big plays that led to victory. He eventually led all scorers with 29 points on 13-of-22 shooting. J.J Sullinger, meanwhile, led the Phone Pals with 26 points. He had a chance to tie the ballgame with 18 seconds left, but he lost the ball to Alaska center Sonny Thoss while attacking the lane, and with it went Talk N Text's chance of forcing overtime. "Masaya ako sa pagkapanalo ko ng MVP. Pero mas maganda sana kung mag champion para lahat masaya,' Miller said afterwards. Alaska coach Tim Cone, in his 19th finals appearance, praised Miller after the victory. "What a great night. You won the MVP, you're celebrating your birthday, and your team won the game. What a great player," the American tactician said of his charismatic guard, who turned 30 on Friday. The ending was a bitter pill to swallow for the Phone Pals, who looked in control and appeared to have secured their third straight win in the series after Donbel Belano knocked in a 3-pointer that gave TNT a 78-71 lead with under five minutes to play. But they suddenly melted down offensively and lost their focus on defense. Those factors paved the way for the Aces to outscore the Phone Pals, 15-4, in the closing minutes. Game 5 of the best-of-seven series is set for Sunday also at the Big Dome. "Game 5 will be a game of attrition. I just hope we have some more left to compete," Cone said. The scores: Alaska (86): Miller 29, Ellis 19, Hugnatan 12, Ferriols 10, Thoss 8, Cortez 4, Laure 2, Singson 2, Bajar 0, Belasco 0 Talk N Text (82): Sullinger 26, Cardona 21, Belano 9, De Ocampo 9, Carey 6, Washington 5, Allado 4, Billones 2, Fran 0. Quarters: 21-25, 45-43, 63-66, 86-82

- GMANews.TV