Tough semis showdown for Talk ‘N Text, Petron

Denok Miranda fouls Kelly Williams from behind. Photo by Nuki Sabio

MANILA, Philippine—Could he champion in the 2011 PBA Philippine Cup come from this semifinal pairing? A lot of people seem to think so.

Petron Blaze and Talk ‘N Text, the winners of the last three pro league championships and ndoubtedly the most talent-laden squads in the field, tangle in the other half of the season-opening tournament’s Final Four starting Jan. 5 with no team given an edge.

In the end, it could all boil down to which team wants it the most.

More than a championship berth being staked in this side of the semifinals, Talk ‘N Text has an axe to grind against the Boosters, who denied them of a historic Grand Slam last season when Petron, in one of the few times that it was labeled as the underdog, snatched the Governors’ Cup title.

And the Boosters would want to have a chance to validate that triumph, if only to silence the doubters who still think that what they did was a fluke.

Talk ‘N Text has won the first two clashes with the Boosters in the tournament, both of them very close. The second game, in fact, was in the balance until the final 3.7 seconds when Japeth Aguilar completed a three-point play to pull out an 80-78 decision.

“We showed how big our heart is,” Talk ‘N Text coach Chot Reyes said after the game that gave them a twice-to-beat advantage and the No. 2 ranking (behind B-Meg) in the playoffs.

Game 1 is set Jan. 5 at the Cuneta Astrodome.

“We were playing minus five mainstays. Then we lost Jimmy Alapag and Jayson Castro. But in the end, it was all about guts.”

Talk ‘N Text has not been healthy the entire tournament, and Reyes is glad that his players can have a time to recuperate because of the Christmas break.

Jimmy Alapag, the reigning MVP, Ranidel de Ocampo, Ali Peek, Jared Dillinger, Jason Castro and Ryan Reyes have been in and out of the injured list, never giving Reyes the full complement of a complete lineup.
In fact, the firebrand drillmaster has made do with some personalities he said “should have started their careers in the D-League right now, but are finishing games for us.”

Petron played one more game than the Texters to get this far, but the Boosters will come out fresh as the others after the holiday break.

“We are the underdogs in this series, for sure,” Petron coach Ato Agustin said in Filipino. “We need to double our efforts, especially on defense because Talk ‘N Text is a team that likes to run.

“We have to be ready for their running game,” added Agustin, who will have his share of injured stars like Jay Washington and Rabeh Al-Hussaini.

Some people have even described this series as the championship before the championship, putting into account how powerful the protagonists are in this side of the draw.

But don’t let Gary David hear that.

Powerade and Rain or Shine are in the other matchup and both rosters certainly cannot compare to how loaded Talk ‘N Text and Petron are.

But David has proven that underdogs can get the job done, and most Tigers fans are certainly rooting for David to slay another Goliath if they do make it to the championship.

Maybe then, David can again rip at predictions of a Talk ‘N Text or Petron championship celebration in the same manner when he blasted Powerade detractors that gave his team “no chance in hell” against B-Meg.