'Manong' brigade plays for pride

Barako Bull’s elders are a win away from reliving their glory days in the PBA and they’ve got a chance to barge into the Commissioner’s Cup finals in the do-or-die decider against Talk ‘N’ Text at the Smart Araneta Coliseum tonight.

A victory over the Texters will propel the Energy to its second championship series ever, the first coming in the 2008 Fiesta Conference where the franchise, then known as Air21, lost to Barangay Ginebra in a grueling seven-game grind.

Barako is the league’s oldest team in terms of average age with 10 locals at least 30 years old. Mick Pennisi tops the seniors ladder at 37. Danny Seigle and Wynne Arboleda are 35, Willie Miller and Don Allado 34. In Dorian Peña’s case, there is some controversy. He claims to be 33 but three different sources put his age at 40 (hoopedia), 34 (PBA Annual) and 36 (eurobasket). Pena insists he was born Oct. 12, 1978 so we’ll take his word for it. Lou Gatumbato is 32, Jondan Salvador 31, Ronald Tubid 30 and Leo Najorda 30. The only Barako cagers who are below 30 are Jimbo Aquino at 26, Reil Cervantes at 25, Shawn Weinstein at 26 and Paul Sorongon at 25.

Talk ‘N’ Text has an average age of 29.1 compared to Barako’s 31.1. The Texters are the youngest team in the Final Four with half of the players at least 30 and the fourth youngest in the league. The youngest team is Rain Or Shine with an average age of 27.2.

Barako’s seniors are fondly called the “Manong” brigade although Pena and Pennisi don’t consider it a term of endearment. They bristle when the topic is age. They don’t like to talk of retirement and it’s understandable because none of the elders is retireable – judging by the way they’re slugging it out (figuratively speaking) in the semifinals. More than anything else, they’re playing for pride.

Seigle, in particular, has been outstanding in the Talk ‘N’ Text series, averaging 17.3 points to lift his conference norm to 13.3. Last season, Dynamite Danny hit at a 12.1 clip. In his 12th PBA season, Seigle is enjoying a reemergence. So is Pena who was named Best Player for leading Barako to an 84-77 decision over the Tropa in Game 1 with 11 points and 12 rebounds in 23 minutes. So is Pennisi who took Best Player honors for towing the Energy to an 85-81 victory with 15 points and eight rebounds in 26 minutes in Game 3.

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Miller, a two-time MVP, has scored in twin digits in every game of the semifinals but broke out with 17 points, three rebounds and six assists in Game 3. The Thriller leads the Barako locals in assists with a 3.9 clip and now plays point guard more often than position two.

The Texters are in their third best-of-five series where they were down 1-2 from a 1-1 tie and hope to break a jinx as they lost twice before. Barako was previously involved in a best-of-five series which was tied at 2-all and won Game 5 over the Tropa in the 2005-06 Fiesta Conference.

The trend goes against a Texters victory tonight but the Tropa is unaffected by the odds – in the Philippine Cup this season, they came back from 1-3 down to shock Petron in Game 7 of the semifinals and put bettors to shame. Talk ‘N’ Text wants a shot at a Grand Slam as a farewell gift for coach Chot Reyes who’s relinquishing the team reins to Norman Black at the end of the campaign. And to stay on course for a trifecta, the Texters must beat Barako tonight.

The Barako elders know what it takes to bring down Talk ‘N’ Text. They did it twice in the semifinals with unforgiving, physical defense that took away the Texters’ penetrations and kickouts. If Barako hopes to advance to the finals, they’ve got to play with the same level of intensity, aggressiveness and ferocity that was evident in Games 1 and 3.

In Game 4, Talk ‘N’ Text run roughshod over the Energy and waltzed to a 108-90 win. The Texters shot 30 points in the first period to set the tone. In Game 3 which Barako won, the Tropa was held to 31 in the first half. Barako limited the Texters to 77 in Game 1 and 81 in Game 2 as the Tropa hit only 36 percent from the field. In Games 2 and 4, the Tropa shot 51 percent.

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For Barako’s elders to hold sway, Game 5 must be played at a slow and deliberate pace. Talk ‘N’ Text will naturally try to play high-octane ball and tire out the “Manong” brigade. While Barako will keep the scores low, the Tropa will do the opposite. A low-scoring game will favor Barako. Tempo will be set by the team that controls the boards – which is why in every encounter in the series, the winning team had more rebounds.

The import match-up is intriguing. Barako’s Gabe Freeman took the night off in Game 4, scoring only six points, but he’ll be back with a bang for sure. The Texters’ Donnell Harvey imposed his authority in the middle in Game 4 and provided coach Chot Reyes with a frightening low-post option.  If the Tropa’s inside-outside offense clicks, Barako is in for a long night. If Barako’s defense keeps the Texters in check, Talk ‘N’ Text will bleed for its points. Barako coach Junel Baculi did wonders with his switching man-zone in Games 1 and 3. Can he work the same magic in Game 5 or has Reyes found the antidote to neutralize Barako’s vaunted physicality?

It’s a battle to stay alive in Game 5 tonight.