PBA semis preview: Barangay Ginebra, San Mig set for showdown
GIN AND COFFEE. After surviving a nightmarish season start, San Mig Coffee finds itself matched against the top-seeded Barangay Ginebra in a 7-game showdown
MANILA, Philippines - And then there were four.
Action in the PLDT Home DSL PBA Philippine Cup heats up as only four teams remain, all vying for the elusive All-Filipino crown. With the fall of three-peat champions Talk 'N Text, all four squads will do whatever it takes to secure the prestigious Jun Bernardino trophy.
Barangay Ginebra San Miguel and San Mig Coffee started the conference on contrasting notes; Ginebra towered all tournament long with a formidable roster led by Gilas Pilipinas veterans Japeth Aguilar, Greg Slaughter, LA Tenorio, and Mac Baracael. The Mixers meanwhile, just as they had started in the 2013 Governor’s Cup, started with a miserable slump. They lost their first four assignments and dropped to 1-5. It is only through their will and championship spirit that they have managed to overcome that slump to survive to this point. They were led by familiar names in Governor’s Cup Finals MVP Marc Pingris and Mark Barroca.
Ginebra and San Mig Coffee had to go through a needle in the quarterfinals before setting up a much-anticipated clash dubbed nowadays as the ‘Manila Clasico.’ Expect fans to flock the venues in as much as seven games in this thrilling encounter.
(1) Brgy. Ginebra San Miguel (11-3) vs (5) San Mig Super Coffee Mixers (7-7)
Philippine Cup head-to-head: Tied, 1-1.
Why Ginebra will win: Although the Kings had some lapses in the elimination round and back-to-back losses before closing out Alaska in the quarterfinals, they remain a strong squad especially when everybody plays their ‘A’ game for the team. Japeth Aguilar, who tallied 29 points, 13 rebounds, and 5 blocks in their knockout game vs Alaska, must show he’s reliable in this series. Greg Slaughter must bully San Mig’s frontline, while LA Tenorio and Mark Caguioa must provide the leadership roles.
Why San Mig will win: Marc Pingris and Mark Barroca joined hands as the Mixers won 8 of their last 11 meetings in the Philippine Cup. PJ Simon, who missed the first three outings in this season, gave San Mig a huge lift on offense with his 14 PPG average. Pingris, Ian Sangalang, and Rafi Reavis will man the frontcourt and try to stop Ginebra’s towers. And once again, San Mig likes keeping it low so in order to contain Ginebra, the Mixers must get the job done on the defensive end.
Key match-up:
LA Tenorio (11.9 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 7.3 APG) vs Mark Barroca (14.5 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 4.2 APG, 2.4 SPG)
Tenorio and Barroca are easily among the top playmakers in the league. Ever since entering the PBA, Barroca made his mark for the San Mig franchise. He is now their scoring, steals, and assists leader while Tenorio is averaging a league-best 7.3 assists per match for Ginebra. The two will operate their respective teams' offense like giving coaches Ato Agustin and Tim Cone an extra assistant on the floor.
X-Factors:
Ginebra: Chris Ellis
Chris Ellis is not really the first offensive option for Ginebra, but the reigning PBA dunk champion showed his wares in Ginebra’s demolition of the Aces. Ellis scored 16 points on 70% shooting and grabbed 6 boards to help the Kings win. His size and length will be of great use especially in containing SMC shooters like PJ Simon and James Yap.
San Mig: Justin Melton
Melton, the 13th overall pick in the 2013 PBA Draft, showcased his outside sniping when it mattered the most. He shot 4 of 7 from three-point land to finish with 12 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists to help the Mixers oust TNT. He is expected to be a defensive player but giving San Mig an extra boost on offense would definitely help.
What this game means: The last time Ginebra finished No. 1 in the eliminations, they went on to win the 2007 All Filipino Cup. This is a chance to do the same with their very competitive line-up. For San Mig, the dream is alive. Even after falling to 1-5, they’ve survived several storms and they’re eyeing another Cinderella run. The road to the finals begins now for two franchises with colorful PBA histories.
RAPPLER PICK: Ginebra in 6 games
– Rappler.com
The much-awaited Manila Clasico match-up began last Tuesday, January 28 where the San Mig Super Coffee Mixers snapped an 85-83 crucial victory over the crowd-darling Barangay Ginebra San Miguel. The game was so very close at early part of the ball game, SMCM down 26-28 in the 1st quarter but they came back in the 2nd with a 43-40 lead to end the first half with the great shooting of the former No.1 rookie draft Joe Devance. As the 2nd half start, the full-forced BGSM began their offense with a 7-0 run to grabbed the lead 43-47 but the Mixers find their ways to stooped run and gun shooting of their opponent headed by Gilas forward Marc Pingris to brought his team within a precarious point 51-52. But the Gin Kings has not yet done with their blistering run as they ended the 3rd period 57-65. In a slumping ended of the 3rd quarter,SMCM adjusted in the last quarter as they opened with 6-0 start that gave Mixers down 63-65 but Aguilar made his two freethrows to gave BGSM a 63-67 lead going halfway mark in the 4th. Mixers tied the game 67-all in the last 6mins.of the game but Ginebra grabbed the lead again when Slaughter got his point insid the paint and Baracael buried a trey 67-72. After the time-out called by the Mixers,they came back with a superb offense and defense of their five protagonist players to grabbed the lead 80-75 with over 3mins. remaining in the game. Mark Caguioa broke his silence has scored back-to-back points, Ginebra within one 80-79. the split freethrows of Mark Barroca made his a 81-79 and then called a time-out to talked about their next play. After that Ginebra back on the game earning the points from the two turn-overs of the Mixers and down 81-83, SMCM called their last time-out of the game. Joe Devance scored alay-up from the of De Ocampo and tied for the seven times at 83-all. Ginebra pressured by the Mixers in the inbound play to steal the possession and with the fearless jumpshot of Mark Barroca brought the San Mig Coffee planet a 85-83. Ginebra could not madke their last attempt as the time expired. The final score 85-83 and SMCM leads series 1-0 of their own Best of Seven Series against BGSM.
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GIN AND COFFEE. After surviving a nightmarish season start, San Mig Coffee finds itself matched against the top-seeded Barangay Ginebra in a 7-game showdown
MANILA, Philippines - And then there were four.
Action in the PLDT Home DSL PBA Philippine Cup heats up as only four teams remain, all vying for the elusive All-Filipino crown. With the fall of three-peat champions Talk 'N Text, all four squads will do whatever it takes to secure the prestigious Jun Bernardino trophy.
Barangay Ginebra San Miguel and San Mig Coffee started the conference on contrasting notes; Ginebra towered all tournament long with a formidable roster led by Gilas Pilipinas veterans Japeth Aguilar, Greg Slaughter, LA Tenorio, and Mac Baracael. The Mixers meanwhile, just as they had started in the 2013 Governor’s Cup, started with a miserable slump. They lost their first four assignments and dropped to 1-5. It is only through their will and championship spirit that they have managed to overcome that slump to survive to this point. They were led by familiar names in Governor’s Cup Finals MVP Marc Pingris and Mark Barroca.
Ginebra and San Mig Coffee had to go through a needle in the quarterfinals before setting up a much-anticipated clash dubbed nowadays as the ‘Manila Clasico.’ Expect fans to flock the venues in as much as seven games in this thrilling encounter.
(1) Brgy. Ginebra San Miguel (11-3) vs (5) San Mig Super Coffee Mixers (7-7)
Philippine Cup head-to-head: Tied, 1-1.
Why Ginebra will win: Although the Kings had some lapses in the elimination round and back-to-back losses before closing out Alaska in the quarterfinals, they remain a strong squad especially when everybody plays their ‘A’ game for the team. Japeth Aguilar, who tallied 29 points, 13 rebounds, and 5 blocks in their knockout game vs Alaska, must show he’s reliable in this series. Greg Slaughter must bully San Mig’s frontline, while LA Tenorio and Mark Caguioa must provide the leadership roles.
Why San Mig will win: Marc Pingris and Mark Barroca joined hands as the Mixers won 8 of their last 11 meetings in the Philippine Cup. PJ Simon, who missed the first three outings in this season, gave San Mig a huge lift on offense with his 14 PPG average. Pingris, Ian Sangalang, and Rafi Reavis will man the frontcourt and try to stop Ginebra’s towers. And once again, San Mig likes keeping it low so in order to contain Ginebra, the Mixers must get the job done on the defensive end.
Key match-up:
LA Tenorio (11.9 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 7.3 APG) vs Mark Barroca (14.5 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 4.2 APG, 2.4 SPG)
Tenorio and Barroca are easily among the top playmakers in the league. Ever since entering the PBA, Barroca made his mark for the San Mig franchise. He is now their scoring, steals, and assists leader while Tenorio is averaging a league-best 7.3 assists per match for Ginebra. The two will operate their respective teams' offense like giving coaches Ato Agustin and Tim Cone an extra assistant on the floor.
X-Factors:
Ginebra: Chris Ellis
Chris Ellis is not really the first offensive option for Ginebra, but the reigning PBA dunk champion showed his wares in Ginebra’s demolition of the Aces. Ellis scored 16 points on 70% shooting and grabbed 6 boards to help the Kings win. His size and length will be of great use especially in containing SMC shooters like PJ Simon and James Yap.
San Mig: Justin Melton
Melton, the 13th overall pick in the 2013 PBA Draft, showcased his outside sniping when it mattered the most. He shot 4 of 7 from three-point land to finish with 12 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists to help the Mixers oust TNT. He is expected to be a defensive player but giving San Mig an extra boost on offense would definitely help.
What this game means: The last time Ginebra finished No. 1 in the eliminations, they went on to win the 2007 All Filipino Cup. This is a chance to do the same with their very competitive line-up. For San Mig, the dream is alive. Even after falling to 1-5, they’ve survived several storms and they’re eyeing another Cinderella run. The road to the finals begins now for two franchises with colorful PBA histories.
RAPPLER PICK: Ginebra in 6 games
– Rappler.com
The much-awaited Manila Clasico match-up began last Tuesday, January 28 where the San Mig Super Coffee Mixers snapped an 85-83 crucial victory over the crowd-darling Barangay Ginebra San Miguel. The game was so very close at early part of the ball game, SMCM down 26-28 in the 1st quarter but they came back in the 2nd with a 43-40 lead to end the first half with the great shooting of the former No.1 rookie draft Joe Devance. As the 2nd half start, the full-forced BGSM began their offense with a 7-0 run to grabbed the lead 43-47 but the Mixers find their ways to stooped run and gun shooting of their opponent headed by Gilas forward Marc Pingris to brought his team within a precarious point 51-52. But the Gin Kings has not yet done with their blistering run as they ended the 3rd period 57-65. In a slumping ended of the 3rd quarter,SMCM adjusted in the last quarter as they opened with 6-0 start that gave Mixers down 63-65 but Aguilar made his two freethrows to gave BGSM a 63-67 lead going halfway mark in the 4th. Mixers tied the game 67-all in the last 6mins.of the game but Ginebra grabbed the lead again when Slaughter got his point insid the paint and Baracael buried a trey 67-72. After the time-out called by the Mixers,they came back with a superb offense and defense of their five protagonist players to grabbed the lead 80-75 with over 3mins. remaining in the game. Mark Caguioa broke his silence has scored back-to-back points, Ginebra within one 80-79. the split freethrows of Mark Barroca made his a 81-79 and then called a time-out to talked about their next play. After that Ginebra back on the game earning the points from the two turn-overs of the Mixers and down 81-83, SMCM called their last time-out of the game. Joe Devance scored alay-up from the of De Ocampo and tied for the seven times at 83-all. Ginebra pressured by the Mixers in the inbound play to steal the possession and with the fearless jumpshot of Mark Barroca brought the San Mig Coffee planet a 85-83. Ginebra could not madke their last attempt as the time expired. The final score 85-83 and SMCM leads series 1-0 of their own Best of Seven Series against BGSM.
PBA: Ginebra massacres Alaska to earn semis ticket
BIRTHDAY BOY. Japeth Aguilar swats away a shot en route to leading his team to victory on his 27th birthday. Photo by Nuki Sabio/PBA Images
MANILA, Philippines - With one team at the brink of a breakthrough and the other at the cusp of disappointment, the eighth seed Alaska Aces and the top seed Barangay Ginebra San Miguel fought tooth and nail for the entire 48 minutes on Saturday, January 25.
At the final buzzer, however, Ginebra was able to avoid disappointment as they flashed their playoff form and downed Alaska, 108-95, to punch their ticket to the semis of the PLDT Home DSL Philippine Cup.
Filled to the rafters, the Cuneta Astrodome rocked amid the intense playoff atmosphere. According to head coach Ato Agustin, his team fed off it hungrily.
"Napakalaking help yung crowd," he said. (The crowd was a big help.)
"I think yung intensity namin napakataas and the energy is there," he said. "Ang key dito is we were able to dictate the tempo." (I think our intensity was very high and the energy is there. The key here is we were able to dictate the tempo."
The match, with its huge stakes, got so heated that a technical foul and a flagrant foul were already called in just the first quarter of play. The Aces got the short end of the stick as far as breaks of the game with head coach Luigi Trillo and sophomore Calvin Abueva taking the fall for the aforementioned fouls.
Ginebra, reeling from two consecutive losses, poured out their frustrations and sniped away at will in the first half to lead by 21 points, 31-10, after Jayjay Helterbrand buried a triple from the top of the key.
It didn't take long before the physicality manifested itself again. By the second period, another flagrant 1 foul was called - this time on Ginebra's Mark Caguioa for an elbow on Abueva.
Ginebra led by as much as 31, 76-45, on a Japeth Aguilar and-one play at the start of the third. Aguilar came away with a career high 29 points on his 27th birthday.
Late in the fourth, the Aces quietly crept up on Ginebra with an 11-3 run to cut the deficit to 14, 102-88, on an RJ Jazul three-pointer with 2:34 remaining. But it came a little too late as LA Tenorio completed an and-one play on the other end to pad on the lead again, 105-88.
Ginebra was able to shake off, at least for this game, their recurring problem of getting complacent as they never eased up on the gas pedal the entire second half as well. An unlike their first meeting, it was Alaska who was out-hustled this time with second-chance points (24-18), turnover points (24-9) and fastbreak points (14-12) going the way of Ginebra. Alaska, however, managed to out-rebound Ginebra by a hair, 52-51.
The Aces drew double-digit outputs from 6 of its players, including main playmaker JVee Casio, Gabby Espinas, and Calvin Abueva. They also shot better from the stripe, going 26-of-37. Alaska also made more triples, 9-8.
For Agustin, this game serves as vindication for their miserable losses and poor showings.
"Hindi na mangyayari yun," he assured their lackluster play during the first quarterfinal showdown against Alaska will never happen again. "Kaya na namin gawin ngayon (the energy), kaya namin ulitin." (That's not gonna happen again. We did it now, we can do it again."
Scores: Ginebra (108): Aguilar 29, Tenorio 22, Ellis 16, Baracael 12, Caguioa 12, Slaughter 11, Helterbrand 5, Mamaril 1
Alaska (95): Casio 16, Espinas 16, Jazul 14, Abueva 13, Thoss 13, Baguio 13, Hontiveros 6, Avenido 4
Quarters: 39-21, 69-43, 86-62, 108-95
- Rappler.com
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BIRTHDAY BOY. Japeth Aguilar swats away a shot en route to leading his team to victory on his 27th birthday. Photo by Nuki Sabio/PBA Images
MANILA, Philippines - With one team at the brink of a breakthrough and the other at the cusp of disappointment, the eighth seed Alaska Aces and the top seed Barangay Ginebra San Miguel fought tooth and nail for the entire 48 minutes on Saturday, January 25.
At the final buzzer, however, Ginebra was able to avoid disappointment as they flashed their playoff form and downed Alaska, 108-95, to punch their ticket to the semis of the PLDT Home DSL Philippine Cup.
Filled to the rafters, the Cuneta Astrodome rocked amid the intense playoff atmosphere. According to head coach Ato Agustin, his team fed off it hungrily.
"Napakalaking help yung crowd," he said. (The crowd was a big help.)
"I think yung intensity namin napakataas and the energy is there," he said. "Ang key dito is we were able to dictate the tempo." (I think our intensity was very high and the energy is there. The key here is we were able to dictate the tempo."
The match, with its huge stakes, got so heated that a technical foul and a flagrant foul were already called in just the first quarter of play. The Aces got the short end of the stick as far as breaks of the game with head coach Luigi Trillo and sophomore Calvin Abueva taking the fall for the aforementioned fouls.
Ginebra, reeling from two consecutive losses, poured out their frustrations and sniped away at will in the first half to lead by 21 points, 31-10, after Jayjay Helterbrand buried a triple from the top of the key.
It didn't take long before the physicality manifested itself again. By the second period, another flagrant 1 foul was called - this time on Ginebra's Mark Caguioa for an elbow on Abueva.
Ginebra led by as much as 31, 76-45, on a Japeth Aguilar and-one play at the start of the third. Aguilar came away with a career high 29 points on his 27th birthday.
Late in the fourth, the Aces quietly crept up on Ginebra with an 11-3 run to cut the deficit to 14, 102-88, on an RJ Jazul three-pointer with 2:34 remaining. But it came a little too late as LA Tenorio completed an and-one play on the other end to pad on the lead again, 105-88.
Ginebra was able to shake off, at least for this game, their recurring problem of getting complacent as they never eased up on the gas pedal the entire second half as well. An unlike their first meeting, it was Alaska who was out-hustled this time with second-chance points (24-18), turnover points (24-9) and fastbreak points (14-12) going the way of Ginebra. Alaska, however, managed to out-rebound Ginebra by a hair, 52-51.
The Aces drew double-digit outputs from 6 of its players, including main playmaker JVee Casio, Gabby Espinas, and Calvin Abueva. They also shot better from the stripe, going 26-of-37. Alaska also made more triples, 9-8.
For Agustin, this game serves as vindication for their miserable losses and poor showings.
"Hindi na mangyayari yun," he assured their lackluster play during the first quarterfinal showdown against Alaska will never happen again. "Kaya na namin gawin ngayon (the energy), kaya namin ulitin." (That's not gonna happen again. We did it now, we can do it again."
Scores: Ginebra (108): Aguilar 29, Tenorio 22, Ellis 16, Baracael 12, Caguioa 12, Slaughter 11, Helterbrand 5, Mamaril 1
Alaska (95): Casio 16, Espinas 16, Jazul 14, Abueva 13, Thoss 13, Baguio 13, Hontiveros 6, Avenido 4
Quarters: 39-21, 69-43, 86-62, 108-95
- Rappler.com
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