Rubi hurt foiling robbery attempt

Tanduay, which seemed to have put its act together to be a hot contender in the PBA Governors Cup despite a manpower shortage, suffered yet another blow to its bid when pointguard Jomer Rubi sustained injuries while fighting off burglars who broke into their Las Piñas home Thursday night.

Rubi sustained cuts on the head, hand and foot that needed some stitches to close as he fell on broken glasses during the scuffle. He may miss their three remaining games in the elimination round.

Rubi’s stand against the intruders forced the burglars to flee without getting anything from his place but the Tanduay pointguard had decided to temporarily vacate the place, fearing another attack. Rubi and his family are now staying at the Tanduay quarters in Quiapo.

The Davaoeño cager said his suspected attackers could be toughies in the neighborhood. He had reported the case to the police who are now making investigations.

With Rubi out of commission, Tanduay is down to eight men. Erick Menk is still working for his citizenship papers while Pido Jarencio and Jayvee Gayoso are nursing injuries.

"Kulang na nga sa tao, nabawasan pa. But I have to give it to my players, ayaw talagang sumuko. Look, we’re now at third place and we may even gain a twice-to-beat incentive in the quarterfinals. I didn’t imagine this thing will happen before the tournament started," said Tanduay coach Alfrancis Chua.

With the Rhum Masters stretching their winning streak to four games at the expense of the Panthers Friday, Tanduay clinched a slot in the next round. Two more wins and it could gain the important privilege in the quarters.

Meanwhile, Alaska Milk also secured a seat in the quarters as it trounced Barangay Ginebra, 93-79, in their out-of-town game at the Dagupan Astrodome in Dagupan, Pangasinan.

The Aces took control versus the Kings practically throughout as they pulled off the crucial win that tied them with the Rhum Masters at third place anew with similar 4-2 win-loss records.

Poch Juinio sustained a cut on the brow in a collision with Brian Green early in the game but this didn’t stop the Alaska slotman from churning out a sterling performance, helping the team notch a third straight win.

The Kings suffered a second consecutive defeat and their fifth in six games in all.