PBA: Tigers roar, trump Aces for first win

(Updated 8:10pm) New Powerade Tigers import Omar Sneed's passing was infectious. And the result of all that ball movement was a much-coveted win for the All-Filipino Conference finalists.

Gary David and the rest of his squad were able to notch a victory for the first time in this year's Governor's Cup, burying the Alaska Aces 114-97, Friday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

"We got an import that can match up with the opponents' imports," said Powerade coach Bo Perasol after the game. "The starters were able to get the job done but players off the bench also got it done."

The two teams stuck close to each other over the course of the first quarter, with Alaska shrugging off eight early turnovers to trail by just a point, 21-20, but Gary David nailed a triple to close out the quarter, and the Tigers rode that momentum, forming a 12-2 run over the first two periods, 33-22.


In response, Alaska punched back with 10 straight, half coming from Cyrus Baguio, 33-32. David returned from a short stint on the bench though, to still waxing hot, the deadeye shooter combining with the recently acquired Rey Guevarra to stretch their advantage to eight, 50-42 at the break.

Out of the intermission, the two teams negated each other as they exchanged 6-0 runs, but Powerade was still the more explosive side of the two, coming up with yet another blast, this time crafting a 7-0 spread that made it 63-48 off a Will Antonio offensive carom.

Two charities by Gabby Espinas got it down to 11, 65-54, but despite Alaska now scoring off put-backs, the Tigers still managed to close out the third on a 21-10 run, the highlight of which was a quarter-ending monstrous jam by Guevarra that made it a 22-point game with 12 minutes left.

With LA Tenorio on the bench, Alaska still managed to keep things close late. Scores by Baguio and import Jason Forte had them within 12, 102-90 late, but an and-one play by Gary David and scores by Josh Vanlandingham and Rabeh Al-Hussaini bracketed a split at the line by Bradon Cablay to have it at 109-91, effectively closing out the match.

Gary "El Granada" David kept up his streak of 20-point games alive, extending it to 17 by leading all scorers with 31 markers on 11-of-21 shooting.

"Mahirap mabaon sa short conference na ito kaya eager talaga kami manalo," said David of his team's first win.

Guevarra and Al-Hussaini, the headliners in the off-season's trade with the Petron Blaze Boosters, combined for 28 markers, while new import Omar Sneed just missed a triple-double, totaling 13 points, nine rebounds and 11 assists.

Jason Forte had 25 to lead the Alaska Aces, while also putting up nine boards and seven dimes while Cyrus Baguio had 16 markers. Tenorio saw scant playing time late and finished with just four points, a far cry from his previous two performances.
 
The Tigers out-assisted the Aces by far, more than doubling their output in that category, 33-15. That led to Powerade shooting 52.2 percent from the field, versus just 44 percent from Alaska.

Powerade also got their running game going, getting 13 opportunities to run and scoring 22 points off those chances.

With the victory, Powerade tied Alaska in the standings, with both teams now possessing 1-2 records. - GMA News


The scores:

Powerade 114 - David 31, Guevarra 15, Sneed 13, Al-Hussaini 13, Casio 13, Salvador 12, Vanlandingham 7, Martinez 4, Anthony 4, Antonio 2, Allera 0.

Alaska 97 - Forte 25, Baguio 16, Espinas 10, Thoss 10, Jazul 8, Dela Cruz 8, Eman 6, Custodio 5, Baracael 4, Tenorio 4, Cablay 1, Gelig 0.

Quarter scoring: 24-20, 50-42, 86-64, 114-97