SAN MIG COFFEE COMPLETES FINAL 4
San Mig Super Coffee dethroned three-time defending champion Talk n Text with a 90-82 thumping at the Cuneta Astrodome Sunday and claimed a seat in the PLDT myDSL PBA Philippine Cup semifinals.
The Mixers took the series, 2-1, and joined Barangay Ginebra San Miguel, Rain or Shine and Petron Blaze in the semis. They face the Kings in a best-of-seven series starting Tuesday.
Mark Barroca had a double-double of 18 points and 12 rebounds to go with his five assists, while Joe Devance added 14 markers.
“I thought the game turned when we were able to get an early penalty (in the fourth). That changed the way they played, as they couldn’t pressure us anymore and it allowed us to do our offense the way we wanted to do it,” said San Mig coach Tim Cone.
Marc Pingris had a near double-double of 13 points and nine rebounds, as 5-foot-10 rookie guard Justin Melton broke out of his shell and came out big for the Coffee Mixers, drilling all 12 of his points from three-point country, three of which coming in the second half, stabilizing San Mig’s offense whenever the team needed it.
Cone said, “We had a secret weapon tonight in Justin. My son asked me on the way to the game, cause Justin is now his favorite player, ‘Dad, are you going to play Justin a lot today?’ And I said, ‘possibly.’ You’ll never know who’s coming off the bench. He was playing so well, and we’re just finding him time to play on the court. He hit big shots made good stops and gave us a new dimension.”
In a game which saw eight deadlocks and 17 lead changes, the Coffee Mixers took advantage of TNT’s penalty situation to the hilt, side from their stingy defensive game plan to pull out the win.
With the game tied at 82 with 2:30 to play, Pingris converted on an and-one play and intimidated Jayson Castro’s fadeaway baseline jumper to get a stop for San Mig.
After a Mixers timeout, Barroca found a cutting Devance down low, who scored on an undergoal stab to stretch the lead to five, 87-82, with 57.9 remaining.
Talk ‘N Text was unable to score in the final minute, as Nino Canaleta and Jimmy Alapag missed four consecutive three-pointers in the end game, as Barroca iced the game from the charity stripe.
“I’m really proud of our guys right now. Running back from our 1-5 start and get to the top four after that, that’s really a conference accomplishment already,” said Cone.
Ranidel de Ocampo had 22 points for the Tropang Texters, while Castro had 15. Canaleta had a double-double in the losing effort with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
The Coffee Mixers’ win ended the Tropang Texters’ three-year reign in the Philippine Cup, as San Mig now shifts its focus on the semifinals, where number one-seed Barangay Ginebra San Miguel awaits in the crosshairs.
“We’re trying to do a back-to-back, which is rare for our organization. We never had a back-to-back before and that’s what we’re trying to do,” Cone said.
“To be honest with you, I’m really hoping for a best-of-seven Manila Clasico series,” he added. “I thought that it would be neat. I’m stoked and I’m really pumped up to play Ginebra. It should be a lot of fun.”
Their best-of-seven series starts on Tuesday at the Mall of Asia Arena. (RL)
The Scores:
SAN MIG COFFEE 90 – Barroca 18, Devance 14, Pingris 13, Melton 12, Simon 10, Mallari 8, Yap 8, Sangalang 7, de Ocampo 0, Reavis 0.
TALK ‘N TEXT 82 – de Ocampo 22, Castro 15, Canaleta 13, Seigle 8, Alapag 6, Williams 5, Fonacier 5, Carey 5, R. Reyes 3, Aban 0, Peek 0, J. Reyes 0, Baclao 0.
Quarters: 20-21, 42-40, 61-60, 90-82.
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