by Jonas Terrado
Games Saturday (Mall of Asia Arena)
4:30 p.m. — TNT KaTropa vs San Miguel
6:45 p.m. — Magnolia vs Ginebra
Games Sunday (Mall of Asia Arena)
4:30 p.m. — Rain or Shine vs NorthPort
6:45 p.m. — Phoenix Pulse vs Alaska
Alaska turned the tables on NLEX with Carl Bryan Cruz and veteran center Sonny Thoss playing the lead roles to claim an 88-80 win and secure the eighth and final quarterfinals berth in the PBA Philippine Cup at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Cruz scored 14 of his 16 points in the first half while Thoss flashed his vintage form with 21 points and five rebounds as the Aces dominated the one-game playoff for the right to face the top seed Phoenix Pulse Fuel Masters in the quarters.
NLEX's Poy Erram loses the ball to Alaska's Carl Bryan Cruz (MB photo | Rio Leonelle Deluvio)
Simon Enciso and Jvee Casio added 16 and 13 points for Alaska, which caught the last quarterfinal bus despite an injury-riddled 4-7 campaign.
“Our defense was fantastic in the first half,” said Alaska coach Alex Compton, whose team forced NLEX commit 16 of its 22 turnovers in the first two quarters.
“It’s been a tough conference for both of us but it just so happened that our hand was a little bit better and that they had a tough game last Wednesday and we had fresher legs. I think that rest benefited us,” he added.
Alaska came into the match with more than a week’s rest while NLEX endured a lopsided loss to Magnolia last Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Aces will fight for survival anew as they look to beat the Fuel Masters twice in their quarters duel which begins on Sunday at the same venue.
Kenneth Ighalo produced 16 points and nine rebounds while Poy Erram posted 10 points and 19 rebounds but the Road Warriors played anemic for most of the contest, allowing the Aces to seize advantage.
NLEX fell behind by a high of 28 points, much to the frustration of coach Yeng Guiao.
Scores:
Alaska 88 - Thoss 21, Enciso 16, Cruz 16, Casio 13, Banchero 4, Baclao 4, Ayaay 4, Racal 3, Exciminiano 3, Teng 2, Potts 2, Pascual 0.
NLEX 80 - Ighalo 16, Galanza 14, Quinahan 13, Erram 10, Paniamogan 8, Magat 7, Rios 5, Baguio 3, Paredes 2, Tiongson 2, Taulava 0, Soyud 0, Tallo 0, Lao 0.
Quarters: 23-17, 44-25, 73-50, 88-80.