MANILA, Philippines - The banner 2010-11 PBA season comes to a climactic end as the Talk n Text Tropang Texters and the Petron Blaze Boosters decide who bring home the Governors Cup crown in a do-or-die setto at the Smart Araneta Coliseum today.
It’s a fitting finish in a battle for no ordinary championship.
Talk n Text’s quest for grand slam and Petron Blaze’s bid for revenge and redemption boil down to one final game to be tipped off at 7 p.m.
There’s no more tomorrow and it’s now a question of heart and character for both teams.
There’s no more room for error; no more time to relax, and so the contending teams are only expected to give it all that they’ve got.
It’s an ultimate match to close the classic series earlier seen as a lopsided one.
“In a series like this, it will be won by one thing – heart,” said Talk n Text coach Chot Reyes.
“From the beginning, I’ve been saying this series is about who’s got the bigger heart,” said Petron coach Ato Agustin.
Petron, under the San Miguel Beer banner, has gone 3-2 while Talk n Text 1-2 in do-or-die (Game Seven) final matches.
The Tropang Texters fought with great resolve and kept their grand slam hopes alive with a 104-78 mighty conquest of the Boosters Friday.
It’s been a seesaw series of unbelievable comebacks and routs that anything can well happen in the deciding Game Seven.
“We’ve shown in this series that we can rebound from a blowout. We did that in Game Four and we’ll do our very best to do it again,” said Agustin.
Agustin is particularly hoping for Anthony Grundy to spring back from his five-point struggle in Game Six.
The Texters overwhelmed Grundy and his Petron teammates with a spirited game Sunday, riding emotional high provided by the return of original import Maurice Baker and local sentinel Jason Castro.
Reyes said Castro’s status is day-to-day.
“Everything will depend on how he feels or how he can tolerate the pain,” said Reyes on whether Castro is going to play again tonight.
Castro said he’s ready to endure his strained knee but Reyes said they have to balance “the good of the team and long-term situation of the player.”
Reyes insisted, in the end, it’s about the desire and determination of the team.
With their lives on the line, the Texters played with great guts and hacked out a 26-point win while limiting the Boosters to their season lowest output Friday.
“We’re not able to stop Jason (Castro). And worse, we hardly got anything from Anthony Grundy,” rued Agustin.
Before Game Six, Grundy averaged 21.6 points and 8.6 rebounds in the series.
“All we wanted for Baker was to defend Grundy. That he delivered points was a bonus,” said Reyes.