INQUIRER PHOTO/ August dela Cruz
MANILA, Philippines—With its high-priced, fully loaded roster playing at full throttle, Talk ‘N Text tripped a Powerade side that never wanted to quit Sunday night, hacking out a 110-101 victory that made the Tropang Texters the first repeat champions of the PBA Philippine Cup in 27 years.
The Texters broke out of the gates hard—their hardest in the series—and zoomed to leads of as many as 24 points before about 14,000 fans at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on the way to wrapping up the best-of-seven title playoffs, four games to one.
Talk ‘N Text was dragged into another pulsating finish by the Tigers and needed to close it out behind its superstars before duplicating what defunct Great Taste last pulled off in 1985.
“They just wouldn’t give up,” Talk N Text coach Chot Reyes said of the Tigers. “But neither did we.”
Ryan Reyes scattered 20 points, had eight rebounds and an all-time high 10 steals even as five others scored 10 or more in a game that clinched what could go down as the most important all-Filipino title of the franchise.
Larry Fonacier didn’t reach twin digits with nine, but his 16.2-point, six-rebound, three-assist and team-leading 34-minute averages earned him the PBA Press Corps-Bayad Center Finals MVP award over Jason Castro.
Ranidel de Ocampo had 18 points, Jimmy Alapag contributed 17 that went with six assists, Castro had 14 markers, seven boards and six feeds and Ali Peek and Kelly Williams combined for 23 points and 15 rebounds for the Texters.
Gary David again carried the fight for the Tigers, who crept within nine with two minutes left at 94-103 before Reyes pulled off his final steal that led to a De Ocampo basket and restored an 11-point lead with 79 seconds left.
David finished with a game-high 37 points.
Coach Reyes, who steered his squad to a comeback from a 1-3 Final Four deficit against Petron Blaze, won his eighth title as a coach, just two shy for third all-time behind Norman Black.
“Every championship has its distinct flavour,” Reyes said in the din of the celebration. “But the all-Filipino is different, and becoming the first back-to-back champion in 27 years, I’m out of words.”
The retired Baby Dalupan of the legendary Crispa Redmanizers won 15, with Tim Cone of B-Meg just two behind with 13.
“Failing to win the Grand Slam was painful,” Reyes added inside the press room. “We came within two quarters of winning it all.”
Talk ‘N Text opened up a 14-point lead after the first quarter while holding David without a field goal in that span.
The scores:
TALK N’ TEXT 110—Reyes 20, De Ocampo 18, Alapag 17, Castro 14, Peek 13, Williams 10, Fonacier 9, Dillinger 7, Gamalinda 2, Carey 0.
POWERADE 101—David 37, Anthony 22, Casio 19, Lassiter 12, Adducul 4, Kramer 3, Crisano 3, Vanlandingham 1, Lingganay 0, Allera 0, Cruz 0.
Quarters: 30-16, 60-46, 85-64, 110-101