Cabagnot does it again for Beermen

MANILA, Philippines - For the second straight game, San Miguel Beer pulled off a squeaker behind the endgame heroics of Alex Cabagnot.

In a virtual repeat of their two-point win over Alaska Milk Wednesday, Cabagnot delivered the winning basket in the dying seconds as the Beermen nipped the B-MEG Derby Ace Llamados, 85-83, to regain the solo lead in the PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum last night.

The scrappy guard got away from main defender Roger Yap off the dribble then soared for a reverse layup off Rico Maierhofer as he shattered an 83-all deadlock with the clock winding down to the finish.

“I’m shocked as we once again got away with a nail-biting win. It so happened that there’s Alex, a player smart enough to make such play,” said San Miguel coach Ato Agustin.

“We really intended to go to Alex. I trust him as I can see he’s got so much talent. He can drive, he can stop then jump and he’s a good passer,” Agustin added.

Three nights ago, Cabagnot scored on a twisting shot off LA Tenorio also in the dying seconds as the Beermen nosed out the Aces, 99-97.

Meanwhile, Talk n Text seeks to regain a piece of the lead as it clashes with Alaska Milk in a much-awaited match at 6:30 p.m. tonight.

Rain or Shine and Barako Bull face off in the 4 p.m. curtain-raiser of the Sunday twinbill serving as the last part of the league’s Halloween presentation.

Dondon Hontiveros, Danny Seigle, Joseph Yeo and Danny Ildefonso delivered the goods earlier as San Miguel took control in the first three quarters before facing a tough Derby Ace challenge at the finish.

Gary David put in a league season-high 31 points as Powerade whipped Meralco, 81-66, to move up to fifth place at 3-3 in the nightcap.

With the bailout basket from Cabagnot, the Beermen made it 4-0 under coach Agustin and 5-1 overall in the tourney.

Peter June Simon made up for three crucial lapses with a booming three-pointer that tied the count at 83-all with 14.7 seconds left.

But unable to make the necessary stop in the closing seconds, the Llamados fell deeper down the cellar at 1-5.

The two teams figured in a highly emotional match marked by three technical fouls and the ejection of Jay Washington for throwing the ball on a fallen Don Allado in the third quarter.

Allado, James Yap, Roger Yap and Simon fuelled a key run that had the Llamados fighting back into contention, 80-81, at endgame.

Curiously, the Llamados lost the game though shooting better from the field and winning the rebounding battle.

The two Yaps, Maierhofer, Jondan Salvador and Allado snared at least seven caroms each for the Llamados who outrebounded the Beermen, 54-40.

Seigle, Yeo, Olsen Racela, Danny Ildefonso and Dorian Pena carried the Beermen on their shoulders earlier as SMB led by as many as 16 in the second period.