Talk ‘N Text stays in the hunt, pummels San Mig Coffee

MANILA, Philippines – Jimmy Alapag said he wanted his team to play complete basketball for 48 minutes. He said that’s what would keep them in the hunt for a title in the 2014 PLDT Home Telpad PBA Governors’ Cup. 

He was right. And that’s exactly what the Talk ‘N Text Tropang Texters did on Monday night, June 23. 

The Texters started out strong and maintained their intensity the rest of the way to deal the San Mig Super Coffee Mixers a 112-86 beating at the Smart Araneta Coliseum to stay alive in the best-of-5 semifinal series at 2-1.  

Letting it rain with 14 triples, the Texters began began pulling away at halftime with a 52-37 advantage after trailing by a point, 20-21, at the end of the first.  

Clearly not content and wanting to vent out their frustrations over consecutive losses, Talk ‘N Text pressed down hard on the gas pedal in the second half.  

They dropped 33 points on 5-of-7 three-point shooting in the third to lead by a daunting 85-64 entering the fourth.  

The Texters’ merciless assault carried on all throughout that last period as they notched their biggest lead at 92-64 after a KG Canaleta triple with 10:17 to play.  

Ranidel de Ocampo led the charge for Talk ‘N Text with 24 points, as Jayson Castro and Paul Harris added 14 and 12 markers, respectively. Harris also had 12 rebounds.  

“It just gives us a chance to fight another day. They’re still up 2-1 so they still have the advantage,” TNT head coach Norman Black said.  

“What I’m hoping for now is that we can win one more game and put a little bit of pressure on them and hopefully get this thing to a Game 5.” 

Talk ‘N Text looked alive in Game 3. Their defense left strangle marks on San Mig and their offense was on-target. With every possession, the Texters made sure guys like Marqus Blakely, Marc Pingris, Mark Barroca and James Yap would bleed for their points. 

Simply put, the Texters looked like they had no plans of going on vacation just yet. 

Looking like they’d just burned through the tight ropes of San Mig Coffee’s defense from Games 1 and 2, Talk ‘N Text scored at will and played like a mean well-oiled basketball machine as they reminded everybody that the Mixers aren’t the only champion team in this series.  

The biggest factor for Talk ‘N Text was their superb offense. They were passing without hesitation, spacing well enough and knocking down shots. By the end of the game, the Texters tallied 30 assists.  

“The one thing that really got us going tonight was really playing as a team offensively,” Black pointed out. 

“The ball was really moving from hands to hands, nobody was really holding it. Guys were really looking to make the extra pass and look for the better shot. That’s one of the things we’ve been preaching all year. 

“Tonight we really played as a team. We really need to have ball movement if we really want to have a chance of winning against San Mig Coffee.” 

The Talk ‘N Text inferno, continuously fanned through hot shooting, became too much for the Mixers to overcome that coach Tim Cone conceded the game beginning the final frame and sat out his starters.  

Even with the game out of reach for San Mig and as Talk ‘N Text’s bench players earned their playing time in the fourth, they never relented and incessantly executed their plays, fought for rebounds, and kept shooting.  

Black also didn’t waste time in using up his bench as he fielded nearly everybody before halftime. As a result, he received crucial contributions from guys like Elmer Espiritu (10 points), Danny Seigle (13 points), and Rob Reyes (4 points).  

“Well I was sticking to a 10-man rotation and it wasn’t working. So I figured I’d give everybody a chance to play and see what would happen,” Black explained his decision to empty his bench.  

“I’m very, very pleased that the players that I called on responded well. It was just a decision just to have everybody play, see who’s gonna play well and keep them on the floor. Fortunately for me tonight, everybody played well.” 

For the Mixers, PJ Simon led all scorers with 18 points in just 15 minutes of playing time. Joe Devance added 11, while Blakely had only 8 markers and 7 rebounds.  

Scores

Talk N Text 112 – De OCampo 24, Castro 14, Seigle 13, Harris 12, Alapag 11, Espiritu 10, Williams 6, Canaleta 6, Reyes 4, Fonacier 4, Aban 2, J. Reyes 2, Ryan Reyes 2, Carey 2, Baclao 0.

San Mig Coffee 86 – Simon 18, Devance 11, Blakely 8, Taha 8, Pingris 7, Mallari 7, Barroca 6, Sanggalang 6, Yap 4, Maliksi 3, Gaco 3, Matias 2, Melton 2, Reavis 1, Holstein 1. 

Quarter scores: 20-21; 52-37; 85-64; 112-86. 

– Rappler.com