Jimmy Alapag and Harvey Carey vs Sean Anthony. Photo by Nuki Sabio
MANILA, Philippines—Talk ‘N Text sets out as the overwhelming pick Monday in its PBA Philippine Cup title series with a Powerade side that welcomes back rookie JV Casio to its lineup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City.
The game is set at 6:45 p.m. with the defending champion Tropang Texters taking the momentum of an almost effortless 116-100 Game 1 victory in Digos, Davao del Sur, over the weekend.
But coach Chot Reyes is trying hard to downplay that win, citing a tremendously high shooting clip and the absence of Casio for the Tigers.
“They didn’t have JV,” Reyes said. “We will make adjustments for his return.”
Even reigning MVP Jimmy Alapag refused to acknowledge Game 1 as easy.
“Nothing is easy in the Finals,” the 5-foot-8 point guard said. “I’d like to see this series go
3-0 our way before I can breathe (easier).”
Casio sat out Game 1 as coach Bo Perasol decided to rest him because of a bruised right hamstring. And Perasol practically gave away the answer to the question on whether or not his prized rookie will return Monday.
“You can’t keep a guy like JV out of the court for long,” he said.
Gary David, the tournament’s leading scorer who got bottled up the whole night because the Talk ‘N Text defense concentrated on him more in the absence of Casio, is also confident of a Powerade comeback.
“It’s just 1-0,” said David, whose 19 points in Game 1 were more than five points shy of his average, in Filipino. “Our morale remains high. We will make adjustments for Game 2.”
The Texters are within three more wins of achieving what no team has done in the last 27 years: Repeat as all-Filipino champion.
A squad led by the incomparable Ricardo Brown in 1985 was the last to pull the feat.
Last Saturday, the Texters used one hot start to build leads of as many as 19 points in the first half on the way to the win that, had it been fashioned out against any other squad, would have crushed its confidence.
But not Powerade.
“It also happened to us in Game 1 against Rain or Shine (in the semifinals),” David said. “But we bounced back. This team has a tough character.”
Raymundo trade rumors
Meanwhile, rumors of a trade involving superstar power forward Kerby Raymundo swirled after B-Meg fell to eighth-seeded Powerade in the quarterfinals.
Raymundo has played all his years in the league with the Llamados and he was once considered to be one of only two “untouchable” players in the squad along with two-time MVP James Yap.
Another superstar, Alaska point guard LA Tenorio, is also said to be on the trading block.
The Aces failed to make it past the eliminations of the ongoing conference after coach Tim Cone left for B-Meg.