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Alaska pushes San Mig Super Coffee to the brink of elimination

Recharged and all, San Mig Super Coffee still could not find a way to solve Alaska’s perplexing puzzle.

Banking on a decisive six-minute wonder in the payoff canto, the defending champion Aces sustained their mastery over the Super Coffee Mixers Monday night with a convincing 87-77 victory to inch closer towards the semifinal round in the PBA Commissioners Cup at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.

Riding high on a five-game winning run including an equally impressive 85-66 victory in their previous meeting the night before, Alaska employed a suffocating defensive blanket that sparked a decisive 14-0 nothing in the payoff canto and enabled it to pull away for good from the retooled San Mig Super Coffee crew.

Reigning Best Import Rob Dozier led all scorers with 24 points and served as the defensive anchor in the Aces’ strong surge in the fourth canto where they held the Mixers scoreless in a telling six-minute span while turning a precarious one-point lead into a commanding 84-69 spread going to the last 2:19 of play.

The Mixers still entertained hopes of a miraculous comeback as they scored eight straight points and pulled within 77-84, capped by a Mark Barroca jumper with 1:13 remaining.

However, Alaska won’t be denied as Dozier once again made his presence felt in the lane that saw his San Mig Super Coffee counterpart James Mays and Barroca fouling out inside the final minute.

Giving Dozier the needed support were Cyrus Baguio, Calvin Abueva, Sonny Thoss and guard JVee Casio who all chipped in at least eight points.

Mays and Yap, who sat out the team’s final elimination game to further recuperate from back injuries, combined for 30 points while Barroca had 17 markers but the Mixers clearly missed the usual numbers from gunner PJ Simon, Marc Pingris and rookie Ian Sangalang.

It was the fourth straight loss and sixth overall in its last seven outings for San Mig Super Coffee, which is now hard-pressed to equalize the best-of-three series with a win on Game 2 on Wednesday also at the Big Dome.
 
The Main Man: Rob Dozier once again proved why he is the reigning Best Import as he delivered the goods offensively with a game-best 24 points and even served as the anchor of the Aces’ lockdown defense against the Mixers in the payoff canto.

He also had 15 rebounds and three blocks.
 
Honorable Mention: Complementing Dozier’s solid performance were the likes of Cyrus Baguio, Calvin Abueva, Sonny Thoss and JVee Casio who also dished out ample contributions in the payoff canto.
 
Game Turning Point: After the Mixers pulled within 69-70 off Joe Devance’s completed three-point play, the Aces suddenly went on a roll as they buckled down defensively and executed with ease, scoring 14 unanswered points for a 15-point cushion going to the last 2:19.  
 
He Said It:
Alaska coach Luigi Trillo: “It’s our defense which proved the key. In the fourth canto, we limited them to sixteen points. We had problems in that big lineup of theirs but we took risks. We did a good job taking them out of their flow of big lineups. One-and-oh is huge but it's not a guarantee. But it puts u in a good situation. It takes two wins to knock them out. James Mays was a monster in the first half and we know it's gonna get harder. Their strength, we handled those offensive rebounds in the second and half.”

The scores:

ALASKA 86 - Dozier 24, Baguio 14, Abueva 12, Thoss 12, Espinas 9, Casio 8, Jazul 6, Hontiveros 1, Reyes 0, Dela Cruz 0, Manuel 0.

SAN MIG SUPER COFFEE 77 - Mays 18, Barroca 17, Yap 12, Simon 10, Devance 9, Melton 7, Pingris 4, Mallari 0, Sangalang 0, Reavis 0.

Quarters: 19-18, 37-39, 62-61, 86-77.