| GEN. SANTOS CITY. – In a game that pitted two teams which were coming off blowout games with contrasting results, the team that came off a loss surprisingly looked more motivated and won. In a sudden twist of fate, the defending champion Barangay Ginebra Kings -- running and gunning all night long as if their lives depended on it -- bludgeoned Sta. Lucia, 103-90, in a game that was not expected to be as one-sided in a Smart PBA Philippine Cup sortie in this Tuna Capital in the deep South. The Kings, four of them scoring in double-digit outputs, decked the Realtors right at the start of the game, taking a 15-6 lead as coach Jong Uichico’s starting five composed of Jayjay Helterbrand, Sunday Salvacion, Billy Mamaril, Marc Macapagal and Rafi Reavis caught the Realtors napping in defense. The Realtors’ plight turned from bad to worse when they could not seem to find their acts together on offense, especially in the first half where they ended with a poor 9-of-37 marksmanship from the field. The Kings, on other hand, seemed fully rejuvenated, scoring almost at will, and head coach Jong Uichico, who was coming off his worst defeat as head coach in their 103-76 loss to Purefoods last Sunday, had a grand time reshuffling his players, at no risk at all. While the Realtors were groping for form, the Kings were unrelenting. They posted a 25-14 lead at the end of the first quarter and hit the turn with plenty to spare, 50-29. “We’ve finally played the way we wanted to play. We just have to play with this kind of intensity, and now we know how to play to survive,” said Uichico after the win, fashioned before an overflow crowd at the Lagao Gymnasium. “We played good defense. I really have to give credit to all of them (Kings). Lahat sila talaga nag-contribute, especially Jay Jay (Helterbrand) and Eric (Menk),” added Uichico. The 2004-05 MVP, Menk made his season-debut after recuperating from a recurring a calf injury and failed to score but the Kings having an additional big body in the shaded lane for defensive purposes against Sta. Lucia’s big men was a huge factor. “Hindi pa siya (Menk) dapat naglaro kasi hindi pa siya gaanong nakakapag-praktis with the team but he still was able to deliver especially in defense,” Uichico explained. The victory however was only the second for the Kings in six outings. They won their first assignment – against Red Bull – but fell in their next three games, including one out-of-town game – against Welcoat – in Roxas City last Oct. 27 in another blowout loss 82-64. Helterbrand, working hard on both ends, came away with a team-best 24 points, while providing the much-needed orchestration, and Macapagal added 23 as the Kings sent the Realtors back to earth after scoring a big 115-80 rout of Air21 last Wednesday. The Realtors, who recorded their second most lopsided win in franchise history in that game against the Express, absorbed their fourth loss against two wins. (AC) The scores: Barangay Ginebra 103 – Helterbrand 24, Macapagal 23, Salvacion 14, Tubid 10, Reavis 9, Mamaril 9, Holper 8, Abarrientos 3, Artadi 2, Aquino 1, Menk 0, Escalona 0. Sta. Lucia 90 – Yeo 24, Williams 17, Reyes 12, Daa 7, Omolon 7, Aquino 5, Espino 5, Gonzales 5, Coronel 5, Mendoza 3, Miranda 0. Quarterscores: 25-14, 51-29, 69-60, 103-90.
/copied from: http://www.pba.ph/content/view/1855/59/
| 
No comments:
Post a Comment