By Ivan Saldajeno
QUEZON CITY--Talk 'n Text moved to within a win from making the PBA Commissioner's Cup Finals with a 111-107 win against Purefoods in the third game of their semifinal series at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Thursday night.
The Tropang Texters pulled away in the middle part of the fourth quarter and had enough cushion to stave off a late Hotshots rally to take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five affair.
Jayson Castro led Talk 'n Text, which can seal its championship showdown with Rain Or Shine on Saturday, with 27 points, while Ivan Johnson added 26. Aaron Aban, not known for his scoring, added a conference-high 17 markers.
Talk 'n Text once again survived another scoring prowess from Denzel Bowles, who finished with 39 points.
Box Scores:
Talk 'n Text 111-Castro 27, Johnson 26, Aban 17, De Ocampo 14, Washington 10, Alas 9, Williams 6, Rosser 2, Fonacier 0
Purefoods 107-Bowles 39, Simon 18, Yap 11, Pingris 10, Devance 9, Barroca 8, Reavis 4, Mallari 4, Maliksi 4
Quarterscores: 32-33, 63-60, 89-80, 111-107
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