Sharp shooting Hog’s Breath Cafe defeats NLEX for fifth win
MANILA, Philippines—Hog’s Breath Café burned through NLEX’s defense with three-point bombs and got away with an 83-78 victory against the reigning titlists Thursday in the PBA D-League Aspirants’ Cup at the Blue Eagle Gym.
Slinger Paul Sanga was on point anew, scoring a game-high of 21 including two triples in the last four minute where the Razorbacks gained separation from the Road Warriors.
The diminutive yet fierce Philip Paniamogan added 16 points, and likewise scored a huge step back triple for an 81-72 lead with 1:41 to play.
“We hit the big shots in the fourth quarter. My players want to prove something. But it’s still a long way to go. We’re just happy we against the best team in the league,” offered Hog’s Breath Café coach Caloy Garcia.
The Road Warriors managed to answer back with six straight points, mostly on Garvo Lanete’s effort, to pull within three but didn’t have time on their side.
“This win gives us an added confidence. But NLEX is still adjusting and they didn’t have Kevin (Alas) today. We just have to keep playing hard, and stay focused,” Garcia said.
Lanete scored 19 points and Ola Adeogun added 11 for the Road Warriors, who had their three-game winning streak snapped.
Hog’s Breath Cafe, once a mere cellar dweller, meanwhile, remains unbeaten in five games and is just half-a-game behind league-leading Big Chill.
“We obviously lacked height, so the next thing we did was to sign up every available shooters in the market. We’re lucky Paul (Sanga), Francis (Allera) and Philip (Paniamogan) were available.”
With the lead swinging back and forth, the Razorbacks turned to their biggest edge, its razorsharp three-point shooting and went 5-of-9 from downtown in the fourth alone.
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