Alaska grabs 2-0 semifinal lead vs Star
THE FINAL Four series in the PBA Governors’ Cup deemed by most everyone to be so close has been broken wide open, with Alaska dealing powerhouse Star a beating no one saw coming.
Alaska clamped down hard on the enemy and held the defending champion Hotshots to 32 second half points on the way to a 95-74 victory at Smart Araneta Coliseum last night that put the Aces within another win of a title series berth.
“We asserted ourselves defensively in the second half,” Alaska coach Alex Compton said. “If we give up just 32 points a half, we have a good chance.”
Like in their series-opening win, the Aces came up with a huge third quarter to grab command before scooting away to earn triple match point, with the first one coming on Sunday also at the Big Dome in Cubao.
Compton pulled Aces out of his sleeve, with Nonoy Baclao and Ping Exciminiano finishing with 10 points each to complement Alaska’s stars.
From a 47-41 halftime count, the Aces finished the third quarter strong for a 13-point lead, before Dondon Hontiveros hit his second triple to open up the fourth that all but dealt the death knell to the Hotshots.
Meanwhile, San Miguel Beer seeks a commanding 2-0 lead against Rain or Shine today in their best-of-five series also at Smart Araneta Coliseum. Tip-off is at 7 p.m. The scores: ALASKA 95— Travis 19, Abueva 11, Baclao 10, Exciminiano 10, Banchero 9, Manuel 9, Baguio 8, Hontiveros 8, Casio 7, Thoss 4, Dela Rosa 0, Jazul 0.
STAR 74— Blakely 19, Simon 17, Yap 10, Mallari 8, Pingris 7, Pennisi 5, Melton 3, Barroca 3, Devance 2, Taha 0, Maliksi 0.
Quarters: 23-23, 47-41, 71-58, 95-74