AIR21 FINALLY NAILS ONE
Air21 Express finally barged into the win column, tirning back Barako Bull Energy, 92-77, in the PLDT myDSL PBA Philippine Cup Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Nino Canaleta had a double-double for the Express with 19 points and 10 rebounds, shooting 3-of-5 from beyond the arc.
Joseph Yeo chipped in 13 markers, eight boards, and six assists, while Mark Cardona added 13 points and five rebounds. Wynne Arboleda (12 points) and Vic Manuel (11 points) also scored in double figures for Air21, which recorded its first win in six outings.
“This is a good win for us. We got over the hump and the gorilla is off of our back right now,” said Air21 coach Franz Pumaren.
The Express jumped to a 13-point lead after the halftime break 52-39, and kept the distance for almost the entire half until Willie Miller spearheaded a 10-3 run at the tailend of the third quarter to pull the Energy within 58-66.
But the Express just won’t be denied as Yeo, Arboleda, and Cardona once again helped Air21 pull away midway in the fourth courtesy of a 15-5 tear.
“It was a dramatic improvement on our part. Basically if you look at our last two games, that was more or less the team we were projecting to play this conference,” Pumaren said. “The first three games were horrific. We didn’t play defense and we gave up so many points.
“But in our last three games including this one, we were able to prove to ourselves that we can play defense,” Pumaren added, as the Express outrebounded the Energy, 57-41.
Air21 spoiled the debut game of rookie Carlo Lastimosa, who paced Barako Bull with 15 points. Mark Isip and Miller combined for 24 markers for the Energy, who stumbled to their third straight loss after starting the season 2-0.
The Scores:
AIR21 92 – Canaleta 19, Yeo 13, Cardona 13, Arboleda 12, Manuel 11, Custodio 9, Camson 6, Taulava 5, Espiritu 2, Sharma 2, Matias 0.
BARAKO BULL 77 – Lastimosa 15, Isip 12, Miller 12, Labagala 10, Buenafe 9, Pennisi 5, Fortuna 4, Intal 4, Macapagal 2, Jensen 2, Wilson 2, Pena 0, Villanueva 0.
Quarters: 17-10, 37-31, 66-58, 92-77.
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