B-Meg's James Yap tries break from Bitoy Omolon and Mark Isip. Photo by Nuki Sabio, PBA
MANILA, Philippines—B-Meg Derby Ace is beginning to feel at ease with coach Tim Cone’s triangle offense.
James Yap and PJ Simon delivered in the fourth quarter as the Llamados frustrated the Meralco Bolts, 95-79, Friday night in the PBA Philippine Cup at the Cuneta Astrodome.
The Bolts rallied from 22 points down and cut the deficit to six before Yap and Simon combined to spark a sizzling finishing kick that lifted the Llamados to a second straight win and fourth overall in eight outings.
“We now have the patterns and the knowledge, it’s just a matter of this team growing and evolving in the system,” said Cone, who brought the triangle to the Llamados after 13 championships with the Alaska Aces.
“This time, we have to make the surge because we can’t lag behind the leaders all the time,” he added.
The Llamados spent most of their nine-day break watching the classic videos of the 1992-93 NBA champion Chicago Bulls, who are known for their triangle offense.
The result was a fluid ball movement that allowed the Llamados to control the game early and lead by 20 points at halftime.
After the Bolts cut the lead to 66-71, a short jumper by Kerby Raymundo followed by the B-Meg power forward’s three-point play off rookie Jason Ballesteros again widened the gap to 10 early in the last period.
Simon then hit a three from the corner and nailed two free throws as the Llamados pulled away for good and sent the Bolts to their fourth loss against five wins.
“We’ve finally met our goal to reach .500. We’re getting better and better. We’ve passed the elementary stage, we’re now in high school working for college,” said Cone.
Yap’s three-point dagger and a layup with 1:15 left capped a 25-point performance sparked by the two-time MVP.
“We had a few adjustments after they (Bolts) came back and James just exploded and took over the game,” said Cone. “That’s what great players do.”
“One thing I love about this team is the versatility. They look comfortable with the system and they know what to do,” he added.
The Bolts shot poorly from three-point range, knocking in only two of 16 attempts and allowed the Llamados to convert their 18 errors to 16 points.
The scores:
First Game
B-MEG 95—Yap J. 25, Simon 17, Raymundo 15, Pingris 9, Reavis 7, De Vance 6, Urbiztondo 5, Yap R. 5, Maierhofer 4, Barroca 2, Acuna 0.
MERALCO 79—Espinas 20, Cardona 14, Taulava 14, Mercado 13, Hugnatan 6, Lanete 4, Timberlake 3, Ballesteros 2, Isip 2, Macapagal 1, Borboran 0, Omolon 0.
Quarters: 25-19, 55-35, 68-63, 95-79