Air21 hangs on, gains tie
Marc Pingris of San Mig (dark) vs Aldrech Ramos, Wes Witherspoon and Mike Burstcher (behind) of Air21 (light). PHOTO BY NUKI SABIO/PBA
MANILA, Philippines—Air21 has done one thing quite well in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup: Get out of KO games on top.
Playing their third do-or-die game in two weeks, the Express on Monday came out with renewed vigor on both ends and forged a Game 5 with San Mig Coffee after a 94-91 decision in their semifinal series last night at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Wesley Witherspoon hit 8-of-14 triple attempts to help the Express dictate the tempo, and Mac Cardona scored all of his 11 points in the fourth quarter to seal it for Air21.
The rubber match is set on Wednesday at 8 p.m., also at the Big Dome.
The final score did not indicate how much control Air21 had on the game as the Express allowed just four three-point shots inside the final 1:57 after taking a 94-77 lead 10 seconds earlier.
Witherspoon finished with 32 points and Air21 coach Franz Pumaren devised a new defensive formation—a floating zone—that befuddled the Mixers early.
The San Mig defense also wasn’t able to stop the Express from scoring this time. Air21 came into the game shooting just 74 points a contest in the previous two games—both San Mig wins—but hit that mark with still 10:44 left after a Cardona trey.
“I’ve been hard on him the past few days,” Pumaren said of his import Witherspoon. “But today he showed what he can do.”
Meanwhile, Marqus Blakely planed in Monday morning and will start his own buildup to help San Mig defend the season-ending PBA Governors’ Cup championship.
The winner of the Best Import award last season, Blakely tossed in an average of close to 24 points and plucked down 14.3 rebounds.
THE SCORES:
AIR21 94—Witherspoon 32, Yeo 13, Taulava 12, Cardona 11, Borboran 8, Ramos 7, Atkins 6, Villanueva 3, Burtscher 2.
SAN MIG COFFEE 91—Simon 26, Yap 22, Mays 14, Sangalang 9, Pingris 6, Barroca 6, Devance 4, Melton 4, Mallari 0, Reavis 0.
Quarters: 26-14, 48-39, 71-61, 94-91
