Aces grab share of lead

ALASKA held its composure better in a strange endgame last night and eked out a 107-102 decision of Star to again claim a piece of the elimination round lead in the Smart Bro-PBA Philippine Cup at Smart Araneta Coliseum.

In command practically the whole night, the Aces came up with timely hits that were just enough to hold off the last of the Hotshots’ rallies, winning for the second straight time to catch idle defending champion San Miguel Beer on top at 5-1.

Star had its chances and bungled a lot of them, with James Yap missing two pointblank shots and then being stripped of possession by Dondon Hontiveros in the Hotshots’ potential game-tying play inside the final 7.4 seconds.

The Hotshots have now lost three straight and are at 2-5 overall.

Earlier, NLEX won a second straight game as it clipped Meralco, 93-91, behind the 22 points and 21 rebounds of the ageless Asi Taulava.

“What a game,” Alaska coach Alex Compton said with a huge sigh of relief, knowing well that his Aces got lucky after bungling several chances of their own to win the game with authority.

JV Casio scored 14 of his 24 points in the third period and committed a traveling violation that gave the Hotshots the chance to tie going into the final 30.3 with Alaska leading by just 103-100.

Then came those Yap misses—both from very close range and way off the mark—which eventually led to Vic Manuel being sent to the stripe with 16.5 to go which would have sealed the win right there.

Instead, Manuel muffed those free throws with Alex Mallari going coast-to-coast to make it a one-point game with 10.3 to go.

ASI Taulava of NLEX goes for a shot off Kelly Nabong and Bryan Faundo of Meralco in yesterday’s match at Smart Araneta Coliseum. AUGUST DELA CRUZ

Manuel then made up for those missed charities by finding a cutting Cyrus Baguio with a touch pass for a layup and a foul to boot from Marc Pingris with 7.4 remaining.

Meanwhile, Barangay Ginebra seeks a third straight win today when the Gin Kings battle GlobalPort in the 7 p.m. contest also at the Big Dome.

Talk ‘N Text tries to bounce back from a loss to NLEX in the 4:15 p.m. match against Blackwater, looking for a win that would keep the leaders within sight.

“We’re happy we got this—two straight against sister teams,” NLEX coach Boyet Fernandez said.

“Hopefully, we can erase that little brother name for us,” Fernandez added after drawing 16 points or more from three others as the Road Warriors rose to 4-2. “It’s our defense that made this happen.”

The Road Warriors blew a 90-84 lead going into the final 1:24 to trail, 90-91, after a Gary David triple with 9.8 seconds remaining, before a serious lapse in judgment by Jared Dillinger had Sean Anthony trooping to the stripe for two free throws with just a second chopped off the time.

Anthony, who finished with 19 points and nine boards, made the go-ahead charities, and with both teams having no time outs left, David stepped on the baseline for the last of the Bolts’ 12 turnovers.

The scores:

First Game

NLEX 93—Taulava 22, Anthony 19, Villanueva 17, Alas 16, Khobuntin 6, Enciso 5, Borboran 3, E. Villanueva 3, Lanete 2, Arboleda 0, Reyes 0.
MERALCO 91—Newsome 21, David 19, Hodge 14, Al-Hussaini 10, Faundo 10, Dillinger 9, Nabong 4, Atkins 2, Hugnatan 2, Alapag 0, Amer 0.
Quarters: 24-18, 46-37, 65-67, 93-91

Second Game

ALASKA 107—Casio 24, Manuel 17, Baguio 14, Abueva 13, Thoss 12, Hontiveros 7, Jazul 5, Baclao 4, Banchero 4, Dela Cruz 3, Dela Rosa 2, Menk 2, Exciminiano 0.
STAR 102—Yap 20, Melton 18, Pingris 17, Sangalang 10, Simon 9, Barroca 8, Maliksi 7, Mallari 7, Taha 4, Pascual J. 2, Pascual R. 0, Alvarez 0.
Quarters: 21-20, 50-46, 85-75, 107-102