Beermen, Aces seek 3-1 leads

MANILA, PHILIPPINES–San Miguel Beer and Alaska try to take commanding 3-1 leads and blow open what have been very tight Final Four pairings in the PBA Fiesta Conference at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay Wednesday.

 
The Aces take the floor first at 5 p.m. against the tournament favorite and top-seeded Talk ‘N Text Tropang Texters, seeking a second straight victory that would move them within a win of the Finals.

 
San Miguel, on the other hand, is favored in the 7:30 p.m. contest against Derby Ace in their own semifinal series.

 
Alaska has been the big surprise of the semifinals after managing to stay afloat in the face of the Tropang Texters’ overwhelming advantage in manpower.

 
Leading the Aces is tiny LA Tenorio, a 5-foot-8 guard who has stood head and shoulder above everybody else at the crunch, his brilliance magnified in a 90-86 Game 3 win, where he hit Alaska’s final seven points.

 
Making the Aces dangerous is the fact that they are coming off a three-day break to rest their battered bodies after the Game 3 win.
 

“It’s nice that we will be having a three-day break,” Alaska coach Tim Cone said Sunday.

 
Alaska’s youth has so far been a big factor, with import Diamon Simpson still managing to play at a very high level even if the Aces have played five games in the past 10 days.
 

“It helps when you’re 22 years old,” Cone said of Simpson.

 
Tenorio has so far gobbled up the Talk ‘N Text guards when it matters most, save for Game 2, when Jimmy Alapag led the Texters with 25 points and 10 assists.

 
Last Sunday, Tenorio was again at his best, putting the game to bed with a triple and four free throws inside the last 44.8 seconds.

 
Kelly Williams has so far been silent for the Texters, who could be playing a less-than-healthy Ryan Reyes tonight after the crack swingman hyper-extended his knee in the waning minutes of Game 3.

 
Alapag, Ranidel De Ocampo and Mac Cardona will be the prime local options for coach Chot Reyes, who has a well of talent coming off the bench.

 
That is also the case with Siot Tanquingcen at San Miguel, which survived another low-scoring contest Sunday.
 

“Give us credit for our defense,” Tanquingcen told reporters Sunday. “(Offensive) talent can go only so far. You have to be able to make stops and give yourself a chance (to win).”