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SERVICES
THE INQUIRER COMPANY
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04
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26
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2024
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SERVICES
THE INQUIRER COMPANY
04
26
2024
KIA is now living up to the promise playing-coach Manny Pacquiao made.
The Carnival pulled off another surprise by pulling the rug from under another giant in Talk ‘N Text, 106-103, Wednesday in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Peter John Ramos finished with 24 points, 25 rebounds and nine assists to make up for 10 turnovers while Hyram Bagatsing and Leo Avenido delivered some clutch points of their own in Kia’s followup to its 95-84 victory over defending champion Purefoods Star last Wednesday.
It was the Carnival’s first-ever back-to-back wins in their young franchise history in the PBA.
Pacquiao credits his team’s sharp axe to the work ethic he has been trying to instill, something he vowed fans would expect from his team prior to the start of the season.
“Ibig sabihin nito siguro maganda ginagawa ng mga players. Sa training sumusunod sila kaya maganda ang nagiging resulta,” said Pacquiao after the win that is his team’s third in seven games, including an 88-78 upending of Philippine Cup champion San Miguel Beer.
“Iyon lang naman lagi kong sinasabi sa kanila, na sacrifice sa training para sa game hindi mahirapan,” added Pacquiao, who is set to play against Blackwater on Saturday before leaving for Los Angeles to train for his May 2 fight against Floyd Mayweather Jr.
“Ang kompiyansa ng team nand’un na at kahit wala ako, walang problema dahil ang mga assistant coaches alam ginagawa nila,” said Pacquiao.
The loss was Talk ‘N Text’s second against five wins, pulling it down from a share of the lead with Meralco.
Jayson Castro put up 24 points, six rebounds and four assists and Ivan Johnson survived foul trouble to finish with 21, 12 and four. But even other contributions from the likes of Larry Fonacier, Matt Ganuelas-Rosser, Aaron Aban and Ranidel de Ocampo could not tide the Tropang Texters over in this one.
Not with Kia tying the season-high 18 triples established by its most recent victim during the Philippine Cup.
Hyram Bagatsing led the three-point onslaught by going 6-for-7 from beyond the arc for a career-high 21 points, Avenido making four triples and 16 points and even Virgil Buensuceso booming in three.
Kyle Pascual and Reil Cervantes scored 10 points like Buensuceso, but the biggest support to Ramos in the stretch came from Bagatsing.
The undrafted rookie who has missed four games in the tournament due to a calf injury, showed he is fully recovered by draining his final trey that not only brought the Carnival back from a 95-96 deficit but also sparked an 8-4 surge that gave them a 106-100 lead, still 47.8 seconds left.
Fonacier’s own triple cut the deficit to just three six seconds later and the Tropang Texters had the chance to tie when Avenido missed two free throws and, although Kia retained possession, Cervantes came off the timeout to miss a hurried and ill-advised three-point try in Kia’s ensuing possessions.
But de Ocampo capped a forgettable 5-for-12 field shooting by missing a three-point try of his own.
Castro collared the offensive board and passed off to the cutting Fonacier, who tried to dribble out to rainbow country but ran out of time.
It was a sorry loss for Talk ‘N Text, which posted as much as a 39-22 lead before seeing that razed by Kia’s hot shooting touch.
Kyle Pascual’s long baseline jumper and Buensuceso’s triple gave the Carnival a 91-82 bulge before De Ocampo, Fonacier, Castro and Johnson led a fightback that gave the Tropang Texters a 96-95 edge, 3:06 to go. (NC)
The scores:
KIA 106 – Ramos 24, Bagatsing 21, Avenido 16, Pascual 10, Cervantes 10, Buensuceso 10, Revilla 5, Dehesa 5, Cawaling 3, Alvarez 2, Thiele 0, Poligrates 0, Pacquiao 0.
TALK N’ TEXT 103 – Castro 24, Johnson 21, Fonacier 13, Rosser 12, Aban 12, De Ocampo 11, Reyes R.J. 6, Alas 4, Carey 0.
Quarterscores: 22-33, 50-51, 78-76, 106-103
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