Giants repel Bakers, gain No. 2 seeding

MANILA, Philippines - Jumbo Plastic used a big third quarter run to defeat Café France, 67-57, and clinch the No. 2 seeding for the outright semifinal berth in the PBA D-League Foundation Cup at the Meralco gym in Ortigas Ave., Pasig City yesterday.

The Giants battled from 11 points down in the second quarter and seize control by outscoring the Bakers, 23-9, in the pivotal third en route to victory, their sixth against three losses.

Blackwater also finished with a 6-3 card but Jumbo Plastic took the No. 2 spot behind unbeaten NLEX by virtue of the winner-over-the-other rule.

Jason Ballesteros and Jan Colina led the third quarter attack as the Giants unleashed a 13-point splurge while holding the Bakers scoreless for nearly seven minutes. Jumbo Plastic went on to shoot 67 percent from the field in that period while Ballesteros and Colina dominated the lane and combined for five blocks.

“Everyone was overeager in the first half. Apparently it did harm than good. At halftime I just told the players if we can’t score we must play consistent defense. I thought we played good defense in the third quarter particularly Jason and Jan,” said Jumbo Plastic coach Steven Tiu.

“This our goal (outright semis). Everyone, especially management, is excited about our accomplishment. We’ll celebrate this for a couple of days then prepare for our next opponent. Hopefully, the guys won’t be content with this,” Tiu added.   

Blackwater Sports and Cebuana Lhuillier wound up third and fourth placers for twice-to-beat edges over Big Chill and Café France, respectively, in the quarterfinals.

Despite the loss though, The Bakers still made it to the quarterfinals as Derulo Accelero stunned Boracay, 86-83, later in the day.

Michel Juico scored off an inbound pass and hit the bonus free throw with 3.4 seconds left to cap the Oilers thrilling comeback from 15 points down in the third quarter.

Café France wound up tied with Boracay Rum, Hog’s Breath Café, Cagayan Valley and Derulo Accelero at 3-6 marks but clinch the last quarterfinal seat with a higher quotient.