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HAPEE
Toothpaste masterfully avenged its first-round loss to
Noosa Shoes, 96-80, to claim the solo second spot of the
2008 Philippine Basketball League (PBL) Lipovitan Amino
Sports Cup last night at The Arena in San Juan.
The
Complete Protectors only needed a big first-quarter
outburst and a sound defense in notching their
second-straight win for a 6-3 overall win-loss slate.
Jervy
Cruz and Mark Borboran each had 18 points for Hapee,
which absorbed a 77-76 heart-breaker to the Shoe Stars
in the first round on Noy Javier’s buzzer-beating
three-pointer.
This
time, Javier was never a factor, scoring just nine
markers on a quiet three-of-seven shooting from the
field.
“For the
first time this conference, I was satisfied with our
defense. But I think we can still do better,” said
Complete Protectors coach Louie Alas, who also drew
double figures from Larry Rodriguez, Reed Juntilla and
Gabe Norwood.
Noosa,
which dropped to 3-5, had only one legitimate run that
came in the third quarter when it trimmed Hapee’s
20-point halftime lead to 45-57, before Norwood and
Juntilla joined forces in a 13-6 run for an 80-61 Hapee
lead entering the final quarter.
The lead
bubbled to as many as 28 points, 94-66, with 2:55 left,
before the Shoe Masters uncorked a 14-2 windup.
The
Complete Protectors added veteran Eugene Tan in their
lineup after a brief stint with Toyota Otis. “He [Tan]
will provide leadership to this team. And also, we need
one more point guard,” said Alas.
In the
first game, San Mig Coffee pulled off a nail-biting
78-77 win over Pharex to snap a three-game losing streak
and improve its mark to 3-5.
New
recruit Eric de la Cuesta halved his free throws with
49.7 seconds left that shattered a 77-all deadlock as
the Medics failed to convert in their two attempts to
surrender the tight win to the Coffee Kings.
Pharex’s
Ronnie Matias actually had the chance to sink the
winning basket but his undergoal stab couldn’t beat the
buzzer.
“I have
to hand it to the Pharex coaching staff. They really
pushed us to the limit,” said San Mig Coffee head coach
Koy Banal, who drew a game-high 19 points from Neil
Raneses.
Dela
Cuesta, a free agent who was signed up just two days
ago, was a big help for the Coffee Kings with 15 markers
off the bench.
“He is a
welcome addition. When we learned his available, I
immediately called him up. Now we have another option in
the team,” said Banal.
The
game, which featured 10 deadlocks and 13 lead
changes, was close since the get go, with no team
leading by as much as six points. The Medics had the
biggest lead at 72-67 and still holding a slim 77-74
cushion on Ronnie Bughao’s split, 1:42 remaining.
Coffee
Kings tied the game at 77-all on Bonbon Custodio’s split
and Raneses’s basket. Bughao missed his three-point
attempt at the left corner and after Dela Cuesta’s
split, Medics forward also Don Villamin muffed his
jumper.
Pharex
got another shot for the game-winner when San Mig’s Eder
Saldua missed his jumper in the next play but Villamin
let the shot clock melt in his hands and before finding
Matias alone in the shaded lane, it was only a second
left before the 6’4 forward could make an attempt.
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