Aces sink BPier, zero in on playoff

MANILA, Philippines — Alaska Milk sustained its romp even in the absence of star forward Calvin Abueva, rallying from 15 points down to close in on an outright playoff entry with a 109-103 win over GlobalPort in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum last night.

Vic Manuel came through with a fifth straight 20-point game off the bench and starters Antonio Campbell, Chris Banchero, Jvee Casio and Kevin Racal put in their own double-digit jobs as the Aces stretched their hot streak to five games after dropping their conference debut against the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters.

The Aces appeared rusty from their 13-day respite, trailing most of the first three quarters before hitting their stride to repulse the Batang Pier in this Petron Blaze Saturday Special.

Manuel and his teammates seized the lead at 85-83 at the end of the third, pulled away at 105-93 on a dizzying 18-3 run midway in the fourth, and went on to hand the Batang Pier a fourth loss against three wins.

Abueva was out due to personal reasons.

Manuel scored 13 of his 22 points in the final half, leading Alaska’s charge from a nine-point deficit, 50-59, at halftime.

Later in the night, Rain or Shine also charged back from a 15-point deficit and beat out Magnolia, 99-96, in overtime to regain the solo lead at 6-1.

Meanwhile, TNT KaTropa (5-1) takes a shot at an outright playoff berth  when in takes on NLEX (2-4) tonight back at the MOA Arena in Pasay.

The Texters and the Road Warriors clash at 4:30 p.m., preceding the exciting 6:45 p.m. showdown between San Miguel Beer and Barangay Ginebra, with a side duel between Alab Pilipinas import partners Renaldo Balkman and Justin Brownlee. 

“We’ve got a handful with him. He’s an incredible player. He can definitely score the basketball. He’s a defender who can get his hands on the ball, so we definitely got our hands full. I can’t wait for the challenge,” said Brownlee.

“That’s my brother. We were in the trenches about a month ago. Now we are playing head-to-head,” said Balkman.

The scores: 

First Game

Alaska 109 – Manuel 22, Banchero 19, Campbell 18, Casio 12, Racal 10, Thoss 8, Teng 8, Enciso 6, Exciminiano 3, Magat 3.

GlobalPort 103 – White 27, Pringle 26, Anthony 16, Nabong 12, Javelona 7, Grey 6, Tautuaa 5, Elorde 4, Teng 0, Araña 0.

Quarterscores:  20-29,50-59, 85-83, 109-103

Second Game

Rain or Shine 99 – Johnson 23, Almazan 19, Norwood 12, Tiu 10, Ahanmisi 9, Belga 7, Yap 5, Torres 5, Daquiaog 4, Ponferada 3, Nambatac 2, Onwubere 0.

Magnolia 96 – Kelly 19, Dela Rosa 19, Jalalon 13, Lee 10, Ramos 7, Melton 6, Pascual 6, Herndon 4, Reavis 4, Simon 3, Brondial 3, Barroca 2.

Quarterscores: 22-18, 46-50, 69-68, 88-88 (reg.), 99-96 (OT)