By REYNALD MAGALLON
Kevin Alas dropped a career-high 30 points as NLEX dragged Magnolia to a sudden death with a convincing 90-77 victory in Game 2 of their best best-of-three quarterfinals affair in the 2022 PBA Philippine Cup on Friday, July 29 at the FilOil-EcoOil Centre in San Juan City.
Alas came out blazing in his return, dropping 22 of his total output in the first half which practically set the tone for the wire-to-wire win to tie the series at 1-1 and force a winner-take-all Game 3 at the Mall of Asia Arena on Sunday.
After missing the last two games due to health and safety protocols, Alas spearheaded the first half attack that saw the Road Warriors lead by as many as 26 points.
The Hotshots, however, put up a huge uprising in the second half, cutting the lead down to just nine before the Road Warriors managed to restore order and hold on to the 13-point lead at the buzzer.
“Masaya ako sa performance namin very aware kami malaki yug lead namin. Madalas mangyari kapag kalaban namin Magnolia, magli-lead kami tapos mauubos yung lead, ipi-press kami, magtu-turnover kami and magpapanic. Ngayon medyo maganda yung reaction namin to the pressure,” said NLEX head coach Yeng Guiao.
Alas’ career night also went with nine rebounds and four assists while getting ample support from the rest of the crew with five other Road Warriors scoring with at least eight points on the board led by Calvin Oftana’s 10.
Meanwhile, Barangay Ginebra staved off elimination with a pulsating 94-87 victory over Meralco in the first game.
The Gin Kings lived up to their “never-say-die” mantra anew and showed better resolve in the highly physical contest before pulling away late in the final frame to tie the series 1-1 and force a rubbermatch Game 3 on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
With their backs against the wall, Ginebra rode the broad shoulders of its twin towers in Japeth Aguilar and Christian Standhardinger especially during the crucial 9-4 spurt that gave them a comfortable 94-86 lead with 1:02 left in the game.
Ginebra head coach Tim Cone lauded his players for matching the energy and the physicality of Meralco.
“This game was not for boys. It was a man’s game today. I mean it was physical, it was rough and tumble, blood on the floor. They’re trying to do something that they haven’t done against us and we know that and we have so much respect for them. That just show their desire, to come out and play physically,” said Cone
“We’re trying to match that physicality and for us to come out and play well. We have to continue to match that physicality. That’s the name of the game in this series. This series is not for young men or boys. It’s for men,” he added.
Aguilar dropped 25 points, eight of which came in the payoff period on an 8-of-14 shooting from the field, and added eight rebounds and five blocks. Standhardinger provided support with a double-double of 15 points, 12 rebounds along with seven assists.
LA Tenorio, after going scoreless in Game 1, bounced back with 13 points, while Scottie Thompson also put up another all-around game with 11 points, nine assists and six rebounds.
The scores:
First Game
GINEBRA 94 – J.Aguilar 25, Standhardinger 15, Tenorio 13, Thompson 11, Pringle 9, Chan 8, Pinto 7, Caperal 4, Mariano 2.
MERALCO 87 – Hodge 25, Maliksi 14, Pasaol 14, Black 9, Newsome 8, Pascual 3, Banchero 2, Quinto 2.
Quarters: 25-25, 56-45, 69-71, 94-87.
Second game
NLEX 90 – Alas 30, Oftana 10, Semerad 9, Varilla 8, Trollano 8, Quinahan 8, Chua 6, Nieto 6, Miranda 3, Rosales 2, Paniamogan 0, Ighalo 0..
MAGNOLIA 77 – Abueva 20, Lee 12, Dionisio 11, Sangalang 10, Jalalon 7, Reavis 4, Barroca 4, Dela Rosa 4, Wong 3, Corpuz 2, Brill 0, Ahanmisi 0, Zaldivar 0, Escoto.
Quarters: 25-18, 55-32, 73-59, 90-77.
