MANILA, Philippines - Talk n Text assured itself of a playoff crack at an outright KFC PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinals entry as the Texters squeaked past the San Miguel Beermen, 93-91, on a gutsy drive by Jimmy Alapag in the closing seconds of their road game at the Zamboanga Coliseum in Zamboanga City last night.
Alapag drove through a phalanx of defenders for the deciding basket as the Texters checked a two-game skid and closed out with an 11-7 win-loss card in the double-round elimination phase.
Talk n Text gets automatic passage into the quarter if Sta. Lucia fails to sweep its last two games against Barako Bull and Purefoods.
The Beermen, a team already assured of a slot in the semifinals and now bracing for the playoffs, pushed the Texters to the limit but yielded the game on a defensive breakdown in the last seven seconds of play.
They ended up with a 13-5 record in the elims in losing the final game in the PBA Phoenix Fuel on Tour series.
San Miguel erased a five-point deficit, tying the count at 91-all before Alapag seized the moment, getting past Mike Cortez and Jay Washington for the game-winning lay-up.
Macmac Cardona, the league leading scorer limited to an average of 7.5 points in their last two games, also played a key part for Talk n Text as he checked his personal slump, pouring in a game-high 26 points.
The 6-foot-1 forward put in four points in a 7-2 tear giving Talk n Text the 91-86 lead with time down to 1:25.
The Beermen got back into the thick of things on vital baskets by Cortez and Arwind Santos.
Stopped in at least two attempts to pull away early on, the Tropang Texters settled for a 46-43 lead at the turn.