Lordy seals Magnolia victory

PUERTO PRINCESA – Lordy Tugade made the winning basket on a perfectly executed inbound play by Magnolia in the closing seconds as the Beverage Masters nipped the Talk n Text Phone Pals, 84-82, in a Smart PBA Fiesta Conference out-of-town game at the Puerto Princesa Coliseum here last night.

Tugade scored off Macmac Cardona after eluding Harvey Carey with a pick from Jameel Watkins then getting the timely baseline throw-in from Olsen Racela.

Talk n Text made an attempt to salvage the game but Aaron McGhee missed a desperation three-point try at the buzzer.

Magnolia, thus, again hit the .500 mark with six wins against six losses while Talk n Text remained on a skid with its third straight loss and its sixth in 13 games in all.

The Beverage Masters showed great courage and character, winning this Hanes-sponsored road showcase minus injured key players Danny Seigle and Dondon Hontiveros. Among the VIPs in the sideline was Gov. Joel Reyes who’s pitching for the inclusion of the Puerto Princesa’s  Tubataha Reef as one of the new wonders of the world.

Tugade poured in 21 of his game-high 29 points in the second half and the Beverage Masters completed a dramatic comeback from an 18-point deficit in the second period.

McGhee slammed home right in front of Watkins as the Pals erected that 18-point spread at 40-22 before settling for a 44-32 margin at the half.

McGhee and his teammates, however, floundered in the final 24 minutes of the game, allowing the Beverage Masters to duplicate their 91-86 victory in their previous tiff in this double-round eliminations.

Watkins threw his weight around in the third period as the Beverage Masters made key runs to seize the lead at 62-61 at the end of the third period.

The former Georgetown Hoya finished with a huge double-double game with 21 points and 23 rebounds to McGhee’s 10 points.

The Phone Pals waged a fight with Jimmy Alapag, Renren Ritualo, Donbel Belano and Cardona providing McGhee the needed help.

Belano fired 10 points and had a defensive gem paving the way for a McGhee basket that tied the count at 82-all with 4.8 seconds to go.

Magnolia, however, won’t be denied of the win enabling the team to catch up with Alaska Milk at sixth place.

Red Bull and Air21 seek to keep their share of second place as they take on separate opponents at the resumption of play at the Araneta Coliseum today.

The Bulls tackle the fast-charging Ginebra Kings at 4:30 p.m. while the Express meet the Sta. Lucia Realtors and their new import Jamar Brown at 6:50 p.m.