INQUIRER photo/ AUGUST DELA CRUZ
MANILA, Philippines—Powerade blew undermanned Talk ‘N Text off the court right in the first half and went on to down the Tropang Texters for the first time in more than three years to basically snap a PBA playoff drought dating back to the last seven conferences.
The Tigers closed out the half sitting on a 26-point bubble, held off a furious third-quarter charge by the Texters before finishing them with a flurry for a 131-96 victory that more or less sealed a quarterfinal spot for Powerade in the Philippine Cup Sunday night.
Gary David scored 27 points and five others tossed in 10 points or more as the Tigers surprised even their coach, Bo Perasol, with their superlative all-around performance that stunned the Smart Araneta Coliseum crowd.
“I will have them eat whatever it is they ate today for our next game,” Perasol said after the win, which put the Tigers at 5-7, a game-and-a-half ahead of ninth-running Alaska.
“We’re not yet out of the woods, though it feels good because we haven’t beaten Talk ‘N Text since I came here,” Perasol added.
The last time the Coca-Cola franchise won against the Texters was in the 2009 Fiesta Conference under Binky Favis.
It was the first loss for the Texters in their last seven contests, their first since Oct. 19 when they were upset by Barako Bull.
At 8-2 now, Talk ‘N Text is just half-a-game ahead of Petron Blaze in the battle for the No. 1 spot in the elimination round.
The loss was also the second worst in the history of the Talk ‘N Text franchise after a 110-73 defeat at the hands of Purefoods in the 1998 Commissioner’s Cup.
Barako Bull completed a day of underdogs with a 106-102 decision of Rain or Shine, which fell to its fourth straight loss in a 7-5 card like idle Meralco.
The Energy, who took control late in the third period, moved up to fifth place with a 6-5 record.
There were no signs of a blowout even if the Tigers finished the first period with a 27-18 lead. Only after a 34-point explosion in the second period highlighted by 11 David points did things started to sour for the Texters.
That output by the Tigers was actually double of what the Texters produced in the second period and TNT spent the entire third period trying to chop down that deficit.
Talk ‘N Text came within 65-81 with 3:08 left in the third after a Kelly Williams drive. But that was the best that the Texters could do as the Tigers closed out the period with a 14-5 run where David and rookie Marcio Lassiter scored six points each.
The Texters played minus Jimmy Alapag, Jared Dillinger, Ali Peek, Ryan Reyes and defensive ace Aaron Aban and Williams wound up their best scorer with 18 points.
The Aces, who are at 3-8, will have Petron, Talk ‘N Text and Rain or Shine as their last foes, while the Tigers have a relatively lighter schedule with matches against Meralco and Barako Bull.
The scores:
First Game
POWERADE 131—David 27, Lassiter 19, Anthony 17, Casio 14, Kramer 13, Adducul 10, Cruz 9, Crisano 7, Vanlandingham 6, Antonio 4, Martinez 3, Lingganay 2, Allera 0.
TALK ‘N TEXT 96—Williams 18, Castro 15, Carey 15, Oreta 14, Fonacier 12, Aguilar 9, Weinstein 7, Gamalinda 6, Raymundo 0, Membrere 0, Alvarez 0, De Ocampo 0, Lao 0.
Quarters: 27-18, 61-35, 95-70, 131-96
Second Game
BARAKO BULL 106—Pennisi 22, Ababou 21, Miller 16, Seigle 14, Allado 11, Salvacion 6, Arboleda 5, Pena 5, Gatumbato 3, Aquino 2, Artadi 1.
RAIN OR SHINE 102—Lee 24, Chan 21, Quinahan 14, Rodriguez 12, Matias 10, Belga 6, Arana 6, Tang 4, Norwood 3, Cruz 2, Buenafe 0, Ibanes 0.
Quarters: 25-24, 49-48, 77-71, 106-102