Urbiztondo keys big Barako rally

MANILA, Philippines - Josh Urbiztondo made a big explosion at the right time, keying Barako Bull’s amazing turnaround in the homestretch as the Energy Cola stunned the Air21 Express, 91-86, to tie the Petron Blaze Boosters at second place in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay last night.

Urbiztondo poured in 13 of his 15 points in the last six minutes of play, fueling the Energy Cola’s incredible fightback from a 10-point deficit en route to their third win in four games in the mid-season tourney.

“My shots just won’t fall and everything was not going right for me. I have to give it to my teammates who urged me to just keep on playing,” said the pesky Fil-Am playmaker.

Urbiztondo was all over the floor, pulling off steals, dishing out assists and making the shots as Barako Bull uncorked a dizzying 17-to-nothing run from 71-81 down with 5:45 left.

The Express just had no answer for Urbiztondo, turning ice cold in the crunch and eventually suffering their second loss in three games.    

Meanwhile, the PBA Phoenix Fuel on Tour goes to Tubod, Lanao del Norte today, featuring unbeaten Alaska Milk versus winless Barangay Ginebra in a 6:30 p.m. tiff at the Mindanao Sports and Civic Center.

The Aces are on a roll with three straight wins but are wary of the Kings who unveil the highly touted Vernon Macklin.

“This team has character. They fight till the end. We did that tonight and we found a way to win,” said Barako consultant Rajko Toroman.

“These guys believe in the system that we’re playing. They’re working hard. They’re coming early in practice. And step by step, they’re picking up what we want them to play,” said Toroman.

The Serbian coach was ecstatic with the stirring victory that they pulled off even with Jonas Villanueva going out early due to a hamstring pull.

Former Ginebra starters JC Intal and Allein Maliksi combined for 23 points as they partnered with Urbiztondo at the backcourt.

Rain or Shine came well prepared against Denzel Bowles, holding down the reigning Best Import awardee to 12 points in a 93-65 rout of San Mig Coffee in the nightcap.

The Elasto Painters caught up with the Talk n Text Tropang Texters at 2-1 while sending the Mixers further down at 0-3.