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| PBA |
PASIG—Wang's Basketball fired a comeback to remember, battling back from 18-points down to come away with a 97-88 overtime victory against Mindanao Thursday in the 2016 PBA D-League Aspirants Cup at Ynares Sports Arena.
Gwyne Capacio captained the fightback, dropping 17 of his 23 points in the fourth and overtime periods, to go with six rebounds to give the Couriers their breathrough win this conference.
"Talagang malaking bagay sya sa team at kitang kita naman kung paano sya nakatulong," said Wangs coach Pablo Lucas of Capacio.
James Mangahas also ended up with 18 markers and 11 rebounds, Francis Munsayac finished with 17 points and eight assists, and Clark Bautista went 3-of-8 from threes to get to 16 points as the quartet joined forces to shock the Aguilas.
"Sumunod yung mga players. Yung intensity sa defense at rotation sa opensa, nagawa nila," Lucas noted of the fightback. "Ayaw na namin maiwan at hahabol kami hangga't hindi tapos yung game. Yung mga bata, di sumuko."
From a 58-40 deficit in the third frame, Wangs bid its time and fired a 19-1 run to close out the payoff period, capped off by Capacio's free throws to put his team up, 79-77 in the last 36.7 seconds.
Ken Acibar knotted the score at 79, but Bautista and Jumao-as muffed their shots which sent the game to overtime.
Dexter Garcia paced Mindanao (0-2) with 23 points, while Acibar got 18 markers and nine rebounds in the defeat.
In the first game, CafeFrance waxed hot from threes and cruised to an easy 110-86 victory against the Alfred Aroga-less BDO-NU.
Paul Zamar went bonkers from threes, shooting 4-of-7 from beyond the arc to lead the Bakers with 22 points.
Rod Ebondo also got 19 markers, six rebounds, and three blocks, while Carl Cruz notched a double-double with 15 points and 10 boards.
JK Casiño and Aaron Jeruta also went hot from the outside and combined for 23 points, as CafeFrance grabs a share of the leadership with Caida Tiles and UP-QRS-JAM.
The Bakers' 14-of-35 shooting is a huge improvement for the squad compared to its woeful 2-of-21 shooting in their 89-65 victory over Mindanao last Monday.
"Everyone was shooting threes in practice and ito yung nangyari," said coach Egay Macaraya.
However, the absence of Aroga for BDO-NU forced the outspoken coach to claim, "This is not yet the test on how good CafeFrance is this conference."
The Bulldogs remained at the cellar at 0-2, with Matt Salem leading the way this time with 17 points and 10 rebounds.
Box Scores:
First Game:
Café France 110-Zamar 22, Ebondo 19, Cruz 15, Casino 12, Jeruta 11, De Leon 7, Manlangot 6, Villahermosa 6, Arim 5, Guinitaran 3, Abundo 2, Opiso 2, Celso 0
BDO-NU 86-Salem 17, Alejandro 15, Javelona 9, Labing-isa 9, Tansingco 8, Perez 7, Salim 7, Diputado 6, Rono 6, Yu 2
Quarterscores: 21-21, 48-33, 82-54, 110-86
Second Game:
Wang's 97-Capacio 23, Mangahas 18, Munsayac 17, Bautista 16, Vijandre 6, Ilad 5, Banal 4, Je. Montemayor 4, Cueto 2, Jo. Montemayor 2, Namocatcat 0, Tumalip 0
Mindanao 88-Garcia 23, Acibar 18, Jumao-as 15, Sarangay 11, Julkipli 5, Rivera 5, Ignacio 4, Ongteco 3, Rublico 2, Villanueva 2, De Guzman 0, Nalos 0, Wetherell 0
Quarterscores: 10-24, 29-39, 50-62, 79-79, 97-88
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