Awarded with his first Best Player of the Conference earlier, James Yap was also honored as the Handyfix-PBA Press Corps Finals MVP as he wrapped up a tournament to remember with a teamhigh 18 points, seven coming in the final quarter that helped keep the Aces at bay. Roger Yap, meanwhile, capped a sterling playoffs with 16 points as well as team-highs of nine rebounds and six assists as Purefoods annexed its eighth title and fifth in the tournament formerly known as the All-Filipino, tying it with Crispa with the most number of championships in an import-less conference. “Chapter closed, destination reached.
Now we can celebrate,” said Purefoods coach Ryan Gregorio after the game watched by more than 16,500 pro-Giants fans. Making it all memorable is the fact Purefoods ended the conference with seven straight wins in all, in stark contrast to its rollercoaster start when it finished the first round of the eliminations with a 4-4 win-loss card. “This is really close to impossible but we did it,” said Gregorio. Sonny Thoss finished with game highs of 19 points and 12 rebounds while Willie Miller and LA Tenorio had at least 11 points each, but the failure of Alaska to come up with a more balanced offensive while matching Purefoods’ lockdown defense spelled doom. And this should sting the most for Aces coach Tim Cone since he has never lost four straight games in a Finals before, an event that seemed next to impossible after the Aces finished No. 1 after the elims and swept Barangay Ginebra in the semifinals.
But while Cone was denied his 13th title, Gregorio finally followed up his championships in the 2002 Governors Cup and ’06 Philippine Cup, incidentally the last time the Giants won a title. Great Taste was the last to wield the big broom in an All-Filipino Finals, needing just three games against Hills Bros in 1987. Swift, meanwhile, was the last to carve a four-game sweep in the finals, against Seven-Up in the 1992 Third Conference. That reality became readily apparent when Purefoods took off for good in the fourth period, erecting a 75-63 lead before fully dashing Alaska’s hopes with an 84-76 lead in the last 1:48 off a James Yap triple.
“We needed someone to put the final touches, and James provided that with his three-point shot,” noted Gregorio. “It’s truly a miraculous ride for us and I’m so happy to be with this Purefoods franchise.” Picking up from where it left off, Alaska finally managed to start a quarter right when it raced to several four-point leads in the third, the last at 48-44. But it lost its initiative when it went blank for more than four minutes, giving Purefoods the momentum to take the period 65-58. In that crucial stretch, the Aces muffed five charity tries, two field goal attempts and turned the ball over thrice while Rico Maierhofer reprised what he did in Game 3 by scoring seven third quarter points.
Behind Tony dela Cruz, Alaska clambered back to within 57-59, but PJ Simon drained a trey and KG Canaleta completed a three-point play as the Giants took the seven-point cushion in the last 12 minutes of play. Purefoods seemed poised to pounce on Alaska’s jugular right in the second quarter when it took a 35-22 lead, but practically allowed the Aces to score the last 10 points of the period for a 40-all count at the half.
Alaska’s fight for survival took the form of an aggressive stance from the get-go, but produced some unpleasant results in the early goings. After falling behind by 4-11 and crawling back to within 10-11, the Aces were called for four straight offensive fouls, enabling the Giants to pull away anew and take the opening period 21-15.
What infuriated Cone the most among the charging calls was the one slapped on Hugnatan, causing him to enter the court and protest to the referees, netting him a technical foul in the process. When the next one was called, against Thoss, he could only smile.
The scores:
Purefoods 86 - Yap, J. 18, Yap, R. 16, Raymundo 13, Maierhofer 12, Pingris 9, Simon 5, Reavis 5, Canaleta 3, Artadi 3, Salvador 2, Allado 0.
Alaska 76 - Thoss 19, Miller 17, Tenorio 11, Hugnatan 9, Cariaso 5, De Vance 4, Fonacier 4, Dela Cruz 4, Ferriols 2, Cablay 1, Borboran 0.
Quarters: 21-15, 40-40, 65-58, 86-76.
Source: Author Unknown | PBA.ph
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