James poured in a personal conference-high 31 points – 20 of them coming in the opening half – in a scintillating performance while Roger preserved the win with a big defensive job against Rain or Shine gunner Sol Mercado.
As the smoke of battle cleared, the Giants found themselves winning the opener of their KFC-PBA Philippine Cup best-of-five quarterfinals series.
"We really expected a tough Game 1 because of the momentum on their (Elasto Painters) side. Towards the end, defense bailed us out. We got key steals, we made crucial free throws, and those were enough to win us the game."
Roger Yap typified what Gregorio was saying.
With the Giants protecting an 88-85 lead, he deflected a Mercado assist near mid-court, recovered the loose ball and got the foul from the Rain or Shine ace guard as he tried to make an outlet pass with 28.3 seconds left to play.
The following sequence almost turned ugly as Roger Yap didn’t like how Mercado fouled him after the Rain or Shine stocky guard pulled his shirt off, leading to a heated exchange of words between the two.
Roger Yap split his free throws to give Purefoods an 89-85 advantage.
Showing no signs of weariness after surviving two knockout games in the wild card, the Elasto Painters failed to score from there as Eddie Laure shot an airball with 13.1 seconds to go.
Raffi Reavies then sealed the outcome with another split from the charity line with 6.4 seconds left on Mercado’s 6th foul.
James Yap, the former league MVP, shot 12-of-19 from the field and also had six rebounds and three assists.
Roger on the other hand, added 17 points in Purefoods’ fifth straight win dating back to the elimination round.
"He’s mind is clear," said Gregorio of James Yap, smiling. “I don’t talk to him about anything else other than basketball. He won’t hear anything from me especially now.
Gregorio praised the Giants for playing good defense, the department where they currently top the league.
"It’s not only Roger who played well against Mercado," said Gregorio. "Roger was our first line of defense, then we have second and third. It’s a team effort when it comes to defense."
Kerby Raymundo contributed 12 points and 11 rebounds for Purefoods, the No. 3 seed in the tournament after finishing the eliminations at 12-6.
Ryan Araña came off the bench to lead Rain or Shine’s scoring with 19 while Mercado contributed 17 points, six assists, and five rebounds.
The Giants led by as many as 11 thrice, the last at 66-55 on a Paul Artadi fastbreak lay-up in the third quarter.
But the Elasto Painters rallied back and tied the game going into the final canto as Mark Telan came through with a surprise three for a 73-73 count.
The scores:
Purefoods 90 - Yap J. 31, Yap R. 17, Raymundo 12, Maierhofer 9, Pingris 6, Reavis 5, Artadi 4, Canaleta 2, Adducul 2, Allado 2, Timberlake 0.
Rain or Shine 85 - Arana 19, Mercado 17, Laure 16, Norwood 12, Telan 9, Reyes 4, Chan 3, Hrabak 3, Ibanes 2, Cruz 0, Alfad 0, Arellano 0.
Quarterscores: 23-22, 51-48, 73-73, 90-85.
Source: Author Unknown | GMANews.TV
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