Welcoat edges Talk ‘N Text, 126-125

Nic Belasco drained a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to give the Welcoat Dragons a stunning 126-125 overtime victory against the Talk 'N Text Phone Pals in the second Sunday game of the 2007-08 Smart PBA Philippine Cup at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City. It was just the second victory in six games for the Dragons but it will forever be part of the franchise's greatest moments. Belasco, a former Alaska Aces player before the start of the conference, finished with 20 points, going 6-of-12 from the 3-point arc. The Dragons Number 1 draft pick Joe Devance scored 27 points, including 13 in the third quarter when the Dragons bounced back after being down by a big margin. Point guard Froilan Baguion also tallied 20, 14 in the fourth to help Welcoat rally from 10 points down. The Pals top point guard Jimmy Alapag, on the other hand, led the team with 27 points with Mac-Mac Cardona backing him up with 21 markers. The game was a high scoring ball game that featured a combined 29 threes from both teams – a new all-time record. The previous record of 28 was established during the Tivoli vs Ginebra game in 1991 and the Presto vs Alaska match in 1989. After Alapag made two free throws to give the Phone Pals a 125-123 lead with 9.5 seconds remaining in the extra session, the Dragons quickly worked the ball down court. Denver Lopez, who had the ball in his hands but with a phalanx of defenders crowding him with time winding down, saw Belasco open and so he quickly tossed the ball to the hot-shooting forward, who then launched the game winner over the outstretched arms of Cardona just a fraction of a second before the buzzer sounded. "I don't know what to say. I've never been in this kind of situation before," offered Welcoat coach Leo Austria after the gripping ending. "God gave us a good game. We were up against the league's No. 1 offensive team but he helped us overcome our deficiencies. All I asked the boys is to show their big fighting heart. Tonight was a testimony to their character," Austria added. It was a frustrating defeat for Phone Pals. They led by as many as 10 points in the fourth quarter and seemed to have the game wrapped up when Alapag knocked in successive threes to give TNT a 117-113 lead with 1:54 to go in overtime. But they couldn't sustain the effort and had no answer for the Dragons’ energy and big hearts. Welcoat connected on 13 of 21 shots, including 3 of 7 from the 3-point range, in the opening quarter to trail TNT by just one point at the end of the period. Successive threes by Denver Lopez and Belasco gave the Dragons a 40-36 lead two minutes into the second quarter. But Yousif Aljamal and Renren Ritualo answered with 3-pointers of their own during an 8-2 run as the Phone Pals pulled ahead, 44-42. Two free throws by Arana made it a tied ballgame before Aljamal hit another three and Allado scored on a layup as TNT closed the quarter by outscoring Welcoat, 18-7, for a 62-53 halftime advantage. - GMANews.TV