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Ginebra drubs Barako Bull to notch first win

Barangay Ginebra rediscovered its defensive swagger. And as a result the Gin Kings finally barged into the win column.

Clamping down defensively from the get-go, the Gin Kings completely made life miserable for Barako Bull Wednesday night, leading to a badly-needed 93-72 victory – their first – in the PBA Commissioners Cup at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.

Reeling from a four-game tailspin including a jarring 69-84 loss dealt by pacesetting Alaska (4-0) last Saturday in Tubod, Lanao del Norte, the Gin Kings immediately imposed their defensive tenacity on the Energy Cola then coasted the rest of the way.

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Reigning league MVP Mark Caguioa tallied a game-high 23 points, seven coming in a decisive first-quarter charge, plus four steals while import Vernon Macklin added 21 markers and 14 rebounds, helping the Gin Kings drop the upstart Energy Cola to fourth spot with a 3-2 mark.

Except for forward Rudy Hatfield, the other 11 Gin Kings fielded by coach Alfrancis Chua contributed offensively, with Mac Baracael and guard LA Tenorio combining for 24 points.

No one was happier than Chua, who also nailed his first victory since returning to the coaching scene on a full-time basis.

“I told the players since we lost against Alaska, I never even once got mad at them,” he related. “I told them ‘I trust you and I hope you still trust in yourselves.’ I told them to believe in themselves and believe in their teammates. I told them let's play some basketball.”

And that’s exactly what the Gin Kings did.

“They're enjoying a while ago, mga assists namin. ‘Yung import nagkatiwala na sa kanila. Gumanda ‘yung takbo talaga. ‘Yung depensa dati sinasabi in our first three games, masama. Ngayon nakikita nila (Gin Kings) at nagpapakita sa kanila,” added the pony-tailed mentor.

Evan Brock led the Energy Cola with 16 points and 14 rebounds while birthday boy Josh Urbiztondo, who turned 29, also added 16 markers for the Energy Cola, who never got their game going in the face of the Gin Kings’ resolute defensive stand.

With Caguioa doing most of the damage with seven points, Ginebra also employed a suffocating defensive blanket in the opening canto, forcing Barako Bull to turn the ball over ten times while taking a 21-11 edge.

Macklin, who replaced the ineffective Herbert Hill, joined the fray in the second, his hook-shot giving the Gin Kings their initial biggest cushion–29-15–with 7:14 to go.

The Energy Cola never recovered from there as the Gin Kings, having their fun back executing their plays, continued to pounce on, posting a whopping 59-35 cushion midway in the third canto.

So imposing were the Gin Kings that they padded their lead to an insurmountable 87-59 cushion, virtually sealing the deal with 3:34 left.

The post-game stat sheets summed it all for the Gin Kings: 25-2 edge in turnovers points. 9-2 advantage in steals. A horrendous 25-of-74 (33.8) shooting by the Energy Cola. 

“I think throughout the whole, na-established namin ‘yung defense sa kanila,” noted Caguioa.

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Earlier, Rain or Shine forged a three-way tie for second spot by outlasting gritty Air21, 99-97.

Coming off an emphatic 93-65 victory over defending champion San Mig Coffee last Friday, the Elasto Painters were stretched to the limit this time by the fighting Express before getting a big break in the stretch.

Towering Croatian import Bruno Sundov fouled out at the 1:15 mark but finished with 17 points, 11 coming from the charity stripe, while off-the-bench Paul Lee contributed 15 points, seven boards and as many assists for the E-Painters, who gained a share of second with idle Petron.

“We got really lucky in this game,” said Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao, heaving a big sigh of relief. “Our import was in foul trouble most of the second half and played little minutes. We had problems matching up with their import. They were making their three-point shots on kickouts. It’s a complicated situation for us. Swerte kami nakalusot kami sa game na 'to.”

Import Michael Dunigan produced another solid outing of 22 points, 10 rebounds and five assists while Nino Canaleta drilled in five triples to finish with 18 markers. Those, however, went for naught as Air21 dropped its third straight outing in four matches, slipping into a tie with idle San Mig.

After Dunigan made two free throws off Sundov’s sixth and final foul, Ryan Araña countered back with a left corner triple for a 98-94 lead in favor of the E-Painters with under a minute left.

Off a timeout, veteran guard Wynne Arboleda - finding himself wide-open - drilled in a triple, making it a one-point game with 42.3 ticks left.

A split by Quinahan off a Mark Isip foul made it 99-97, leaving the door ajar for the Express with 24.3 seconds remaining.

Arboleda had the chance to put the Express ahead but his uncontested triple failed to hit the mark, leading to a mad scramble in the paint, with the leather going out of bounds off RoS’ Gabe Norwood, time down to just 3.8 ticks.

What was tipped to be a winning play turned into a disaster for Air21. With Norwood distracting his vision at the baseline, Express guard Mike Cortez surprisingly lobbed the ball to the 6-foot-10 Dunigan, who had no chance of getting a clear crack at the leather as Jireh Ibanes stole it then readily relayed to Lee as time expired.

“We’re 3-1 but I believe we should’ve won the game against Alaska. Siguro dapat 4-0 kami. We must stay positive. Kung ‘di ka mag-iisip na magaling ka, mas maraming gagaling syo. This win brought us to the upper half of the standings but you cannot take any team in this league for granted,” added Guiao.
 

The scores:
 
First Game
 
RAIN OR SHINE (99) – Sundov 17, Lee 15, Arana 11, Quinahan 9, Norwood 8, Rodriguez 8, Matias 7, Cruz 6, Uyloan 5, Belga 5, Tiu 4, Ibanes 4.

AIR21 (97) – Dunigan 22, Canaleta 18, Isip14, Cortez 14, Wilson 11, Arboleda 9, Atkins 4, Reyes 3, Omolon 1, Ritualo 1, Sena 0, Baclao 0, Custodio 0.
Quarterscores: 26-20, 43-41, 74-72, 99-97
 
Second Game
 
GINEBRA (93) – Caguioa 23, Macklin 21, Baracael 14, Tenorio 10, Ellis 9, Raymundo 4, Taha 3, Labagala 2, Espiritu 2, Mamaril 2, Helterbrand 2, Maierhofer 1, Hatfield 0.

BARAKO (72) – Brock 16, Urbiztondo 16, Maliksi 10, Pennisi 8, Seigle 6, Kramer 4, Allado 4, Intal 3, Macapagal 3, Duncil 2, Weinstein 0, Anthony 0, Villanueva 0.
Quarterscores: 21-11, 39-26, 66-46, 93-72