TALK ‘N TEXT CLOBBERS GLOBALPORT
HIS Talk ‘N Text team is still far from the kind he wants. But coach Norman Black is not complaining.
Not after the Tropang Texters fashioned a 106-93 demolition job of Globalport Tuesday that brought the three-time defending champions right into the thick of the fight in the PLDT my DSL-PBA Philippine Cup at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Larry Fonacier started out perfect and finished with 18 points while Jimmy Alapag celebrated his inclusion to an exclusive club with 17 points and six assists in leading a TNT crew that had four other players winding up with at least 10 points.
Yet it was the entry of Ranidel de Ocampo and Danny Seigle which Black largely credited as major key for their second straight win and third in four games overall that gave them a share of third-running spot.
“It’s a good feeling, having more offensive weapons. With Danny Seigle and Ranidel coming back from injury, we now have more opportunities to have a well-rounded offensive game,” said Black, whose team is coming off a more nerve-wracking 114-111 overtime win over Alaska.
“We can post up a lot more, compared to our first three games.”
Seigle, acquired from free agency, notched 13 points and seven rebounds in 18 minutes while De Ocampo, who missed the team’s first three games because of calf muscle strain, only had three points but also collared seven boards.
It’s now a matter of trying to get Ryan Reyes back (hamstring) and shape his team into the cohesive kind he fully wants that is Black’s current obssession.
“We’ll try and get Ryan back. He makes us more of a perimeter defensive team,” said Black.
“But we still have to fully hit our stride since basically I’m still in a teaching mode in practice, what with Danny S just coming in. It’s like starting all over again. But we’ll be a much better team down the road than we are right now. We’re way off right now.”
Still much too good for Globalport as TNT pulled away practically right from the get-go, stretched its lead to 24 points early in the fourth canto before cruising to the finish.
“We played well, except in the end. But we played well enough to win and at this point that’s all that matters,” said Black.
Jay Washington scored a game-high 21 points but Globalport still dropped to a 1-3 slate after its second straight loss.
Top gunner Terrence Romeo, who averaged a conference-leading 24.7 points in the first three games, scored 16 points built around a 9-for-16 free throw shooting. He missed his first five tries from the field before booming in a triple with 7:05 left in the third period for his first basket and ultimately wound up with a 3-for-13 field clip.
It was practically over by the first half, when Talk ‘N Text led by as much as 41-20 before settling for a 64-51 spread at the turn.
In the course of the first 24 minutes of play, Alapag issued his 3,000th assist, becoming only the ninth player in the league to do so, and accomplishing the feat in his 500th game as a pro.
But the Tropang Texters’ breakaway started much earlier than that and Fonacier was at the forefront of it all, sinking his first three ties from the field and going 2-for-2 from the line in scoring nine points during a 14-2 run from a 0-2 deficit.
Talk ‘N Text also pounced on the Batang Pier going 0-for-4 from the floor and committing five turnovers in the first 5:10 of the third period for a 10-0 spurt that jacked its lead to 74-51. (NC)
The scores:
Talk ‘N Text 106 – Fonacier 18, Alapag 17, Seigle 13, Castro 12, Carey 11, Baclao 10, Williams 8, Poligrates 7, Anthony 5, De Ocampo 3, Celiz 2, Ferriols 0, Reyes 0.
Globalport 93 – Washington 21, Romeo 16, Mercado 14, Chua 11, Garcia 7, Nabong 6, Salva 6, Belencion 4, Hayes 4, Lingganay 2, Menk 2, Ponferrada 0, Salvador 0.
Quarterscores: 34-20, 64-51, 91-68, 106-93
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