Barako Bull beats TNT, end 11-game losing streak

Barako Bull halted an 11-game losing streak after shocking defending champion Talk ‘N Text, 99-97, to stay alive for a possible stint in the knock-out wildcard stage.

Richard Alonzo had a near perfect shooting game with 23 points on 9-of-10 shooting from the field but it was the clutch plays of ex-TNT guard Felix Belano who gave the Energy Boosters some cushion in the end.

“Pumipitik-pitik pa,” said Barako Bull head coach Leo Isaac who also got 21 points and 8 rebounds from Leo Najorda off the bench. “Two games left, at least hawak namin ngayon an gaming kapalaran.”

Belano fired a 3-pointer and stole the ball on Jimmy Alapag to give the Energy Boosters a 95-89 cushion before the Tropang Texters unloaded a quick 8-3 run to slice the lead to 97-98 under 30 seconds left.

Jojo Duncil split his free throws to give Barako Bull a 99-97 lead, 15.7 ticks left but Harvey Carey muffed two potential game-tying shots and Ranilde de Ocampo’s follow-up shot also misfired, allowing the Energy Boosters to escape with the win.

Alapag and Jason Castro finished with 23 and 22 points respectively for Talk ‘N Text, which absorbed its second straight loss and slipped to 11-7.

Barako Bull 99 - Alonzo 23, Najorda 21, Belano 13, Duncil 10, Crisano 9, Menor 6, Reyes 6, Dimaunahan 6, Fernandez 3, Aljamal 2, Chia 0.

Talk N' Text 97 - Alapag 23, Castro 22, De Ocampo R. 17, Carey 10, Cardona 8, Escobal 5, Dillinger 4, Peek 2, Ritualo 2, De
Ocampo Y. 2, Belasco 2.

Quarterscore: 22-22, 41-47, 69-69, 99-97

Purefoods keeps semis bid alive

Purefoods Tender Juicy needed a rare offensive explosion from KG Canaleta to silence Rain or Shine, 101-88, to keep its automatic semifinals bid alive in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup Sunday night at the Araneta Coliseum.

Canaleta scored 14 of his 15 points after the break to help the Giants survive the uprising of the Elasto Painters and improve their mark to 10-6.

James Yap led Purefoods with 23 points including a 35-foot buzzer-beater 3-pointer to end the third period with a 75-64 lead.

“It’s always hard to play Rain or Shine because they have the personnel to close out games,” said Giants head coach Ryan Gregorio who also drew 22 points from Kerby Raymundo.

“We really expect them to make a run because that team has so much pride. KG rose to the occasion and we were able to weather the storm,” he added.

Behind the combined 25 points of Raymundo, James Yap, Roger Yap and rookie Rico Maierhofer, the Giants took an early 33-15 lead and retained the double-digit advantage going to the second half.

But Rain or Shine, behind the prolific duo of Gabe Norwood and Sol Mercado, unleashed a 28-15 exchange capped by Mike Hrabak’s three-pointer to move within four, 63-67 with 2:21 remaining in the third quarter.

Canaleta waxed hot in the next minutes as he scored 11 in Purefoods’ pivotal 18-4 run to push the lead back to 85-67 with 8:23 left in the game.

Mercado and Hrabak tried to put their team back with a three-pointer each, 73-85, but James Yap had a personal 7-2 run to put the game out of reach for Purefoods, 94-75 with 4:12 left in the game clock.

With the win, the Giants are moving closer for at least an automatic berth in the best-of-five quarterfinal series.

“It’s really tight at the upper half of the standing and we really don’t want to lose the opportunity to have a crack at the second semis slot,” said Gregorio. “As long as there’s light, we will continue to pursue it.”

Norwood fired a career-high 29 points to go along with 7 rebounds and 5 assists in 42 minutes of play. Mercado added 20 points and 8 assists for the Elasto Painters, who dropped to 4-12.

Jeff Chan chipped in 12 markers while Hrabal contributed 11 for coach Caloy Garcia. The team shot 17-of-28 from the free throw line.

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