PBA IMAGES
BACOOR – Kevin Ferrer and Gelo Alolino waxed hot late and propelled Tanduay to the Finals with an 81-70 victory over top seed Racal in Game 2 of their 2016 PBA D-League Foundation Cup semifinals series Tuesday at Strike Gym here.
The two studs teamed up in the payoff period as they drilled four straight treys to help the Rhum Masters put away the Tile Masters, 79-66, with 1:30 remaining.
Alolino finished with 14 points on a 4-of-9 shooting from three, to go with six rebounds and four assists, while Ferrer added 13 markers on a 4-of-8 clip from rainbow country on top of four boards and three dimes.
The duo’s explosion allowed Tanduay to rewrite D-League history and become the first four-seed to upset a number one-seed.
“We want to go all the way. Hindi lang Finals ang hinahabol namin. Gusto namin mag-champion,” said a victorious coach Lawrence Chongson, as he finally led Tanduay, one of the two remaining league pioneers, to its first championship duel. “It will all mean nothing if we don’t win it all.
Reden Celda stepped up and led Tanduay with 21 points, eight rebounds, and four assists.
The Tile Masters will meet Phoenix in their best-of-3 Finals series starting on Thursday at Alonte Sports Arena in Binan, Laguna.
It was another disappointing outing for Racal, which bowed out of the semifinals once more.
Jamil Ortuoste topped the Tile Masters with 16 points, while Jonathan Grey got 15 in the loss.
The Scores:
TANDUAY 81 – Celda 21, Alolino 14, Ferrer 13, Acuna 6, Eguilos 6, Santos 6, Gotladera 5, Lingganay 4, Tagarda 4, Javillonar 2, Belencion 0, Mendoza 0.
RACAL 70 – Ortuoste 16, Grey 15, Celiz 11, Maiquez 9, Paniamogan 8, Cabrera 4, Terso 3, Javier 2, Neypes 2, Banal 0, Corpuz 0, Robles 0.
Quarters: 15-13, 31-38, 59-54, 81-70.