PBA: Three-point shots seal Talk 'N Text's third straight Phil. Cup title

(Updated 9:59pm) The Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters have become part of PBA history. The reigning back-to-back Philippine Cup titlists made it three in a row with a barrage of fourth quarter triples, defeating the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, 105-82, and sweeping the 2012 Governors' Cup titlists on Wednesday, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. The win made TNT the first team to complete a three-peat of the Philippine Cup, while also denying Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao his first title in that conference. [Review the play-by-play of this game here] "I'm very happy with the victory," said Norman Black, who captured his 11th PBA title. "My players worked hard and I pushed them a lot in practice, but it turned out to be good for us. "It was a difficult transition, straight out of the UAAP and I forced a lot of information on the players and asked them to execute. But this team has been through a lot of wars and had to learn how to balance that as well. Fortunately, they cooperated all the way so I give all the credit to them." [Related: Black credits Alaska series for preparing Talk N' Text against Rain or Shine] After a buzzer-beating trey in the third period made it 70-63 with a quarter to play, Jared Dillinger picked up where he left off in the fourth, and nailed two more triples to give Talk 'N Text a 13-6 blast with under seven minutes to play, 83-71. Rain or Shine caught a break as Ryan Araña made his way to the line and made two charities, but TNT countered with a two-handed alley-oop to Kelly Williams, followed by Ranidel De Ocampo burying his fourth triple. After an and-one play by Ryan Reyes, Jimmy Alapag joined the three-point party with back-to-back hits to break the spirits of Rain or Shine, 98-76, with under four minutes to play. With the game all but over, Williams breached the 100-point mark with a ferocious two-handed slam with two minutes to go, putting the exclamation point on Talk 'N Text's championship run. Talk 'N Text outscored the Elasto Painters 35-16, thanks in part to seven three-pointers, in the final period. After the game, Black thanked his players and management staff, including team owner Manuel V. Pangilinan whom he called, "the greatest boss in the world." Finals MVP Ranidel De Ocampo led his team with a game-high 19 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists, including five three-pointers on 7-of-12 shooting from the field. Kelly Williams and Ali Peek racked up 15 points apiece and combined for 16 rebounds. Jared Dillinger added 13 points, while Jimmy Alapag dished out 10 points and eight dimes. [Related: De Ocampo named Philippine Cup Finals MVP] Both teams played an up-tempo game in the first quarter, but TNT held the edge in ball movement and floor spacing. As a result, six different Texters unleashed a 11-0 run to seize a 15-7 advantage. Rain or Shine head coach Yeng Guiao was forced to call timeout, but the Elasto Painters didn't seem to fare much better. Chris Tiu curled off a screen for a jumper immediately off the inbounds play, but Ranidel De Ocampo replied with a three-pointer on the other end. Talk 'N Text went on to rack up seven unanswered points, capped by an Ali Peek elbow jumper, to take a 22-9 lead with three and a half minutes remaining. The Elasto Painters managed to score seven in the final two minutes at the rim, but TNT reserves Ryan Reyes and Aaron Aban matched them to post a 29-15 lead after the first quarter. Talk 'N Text tallied 10 assists on 13-of-26 attempts from the floor (50 percent) in the first quarter. In contrast, Rain or Shine had only six assists on 7-of-22 shooting (31.8 percent). In the second period, the Elasto Painters looked to penetrate on almost every possession. Paul Lee, Ryan Araña, and Jervy Cruz found looks in the paint, while a JR Quiñahan jumper cut the TNT lead to 11 points. However, Rain or Shine were unable to contain Talk 'N Text's pick and rolls and allowed Kelly Williams to score six of their first eight, 37-26. The Rain or Shine front court began to make its presence felt as Quiñahan, Belga and Cruz carved some space in the paint. De Ocampo and Larry Fonacier buried a trey each to keep their opponents at bay, while Harvey Carey added two jumpers, 47-36, with under four minutes to play. TY Tang sparked the Elasto Painters to a strong finish of the half, slashing to the rim for five points in a closing 10-6 run. Lee contributed by drilling in a three-ball with five seconds to go, to cut the deficit to seven after two quarters, 53-46. After the halftime break, Larry Fonacier and De Ocampo connected anew from downtown to give Talk n' Text a quick 8-2 run, but the Elasto Painters' defense settled soon and gave TNT fits. Rain or Shine barreled through the lane and countered with a 9-2 stretch. Jervy Cruz accounted for five points to bring the tally to 63-57. The Elasto Painters' aggressiveness paid off as Talk 'N Text hit the penalty with under four minutes to play. Capitalizing on that fact, Jeff Chan nailed two charities to cut the deficit to four, 63-59. With two minutes to play, Ali Peek hit back-to-back field goals to inject some life back into the Talk 'N Text crowd. Those scores sandwiched makes by Araña and Tiu, but Jared Dillinger had the final say with a long-three ball with 0.3 seconds remaining as TNT kept a 70-63 lead heading into the fourth period. Talk 'N Text were held to a 7-of-20 mark from the field in the third quarter (35 percent), but Rain or Shine fared worse, with 5-of-17 shooting (29.4 percent). However, the Elasto Painters made 7-of-8 free throws (87.5 percent), whereas TNT was kept off the line for the entire period. Larry Rodriguez tallied 16 points on 6 of 10 shooting from the field, while Jervy Cruz added 13 points, six rebounds and two blocks. Ryan Araña rounded out Rain or Shine's double digit scorers with 11 points and five boards. [Related: Guiao takes the blame for Rain or Shine defeat] All-in-all, the Tropang Texters shot a sizzling 42-of-86 from the field (48.8 percent) on 34 assists, including a 14-of-34 mark from three-point land. On the other hand, Rain or Shine's shooting woes continued as they tallied 30-of-80 makes on only 16 assists, including only 2-of-17 from beyond the arc. Rain or Shine made 20-of-27 attempts (74.1 percent) from the free throw line. In contrast, Talk n' Text attempted only seven free throws but made them all. The Tropang Texters tallied 13 turnover points against Rain or Shine's seven, but the Elasto Painters scored 18 second-chance points against TNT's four, owing to an 18-11 disparity in offensive rebounds. - RAF/AMD, GMA News