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PBA: Barako Bull bests San Mig Coffee in Toroman's debut, as Villanueva, Urbiztondo haunt former team
Jonas Villanueva (L) keeps control of the ball against Mark Barroca during their PBA game Friday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. Photo by KC Cruz
Tied at 69-all, Brock gave Barako Bull back-to-back hits in the lane, but Mark Barroca answered him with a long two. However, Danny Siegle raised the stakes with a long three-ball that connected, making 76-71, with 30 ticks left on the clock.
After a Simon miss, Mallari was fouled on the putback where he would only draw a split from the line. The Mixers trapped the inbounds pass and forced Barako Bull to burn their final timeout. They triggered the ball in play anew and found Jonas Villanueva, who was promptly fouled and made only the second charity.
With 8.9 ticks left, the Mixers called a timeout and set up James Yap for a corner three-pointer, 77-75. San Mig Coffee then sent Siegle to the line anew, but the veteran made both charities with 5.1 seconds left on the clock.
Tim Cone used up the Mixers' final timeout, but Yap would not connect this time. The clock ran out, and Barako Bull escaped with their first win.
"It's an important win for us, even if San Miguel was playing without an import," said Barako Bull head consultant Raijko Toroman. "We played good defense and we have to emphasize that as the new strength of Barako Bull."
Asked whether he was to be officially named as head coach in the future, Toroman said right now he was "responsible for Barako Bull," despite his official designation as head consultant.
Toroman said it would take time to put together his offensive scheme for Barako Bull, which he says incorporates new elements from his playbook with Smart Gilas and Petron. "It'll take some time, but we have a nice atmosphere in Barako Bull where the guys work hard and try to pick up everything," he pointed out.
Urbiztondo and Mark Macapagal gave Barako Bull a jolt by nailing a triple each early in the first quarter. Evan Brock added consecutive makes in the lane, but James Yap drilled two treys as the only Mixer on the scoreboard, 10-8.
Other Mixers joined the fray once Barako Bull tapered off, as Yap and Leo Najorda combined for seven in a 9-5 blast, capped by an Alex Mallari bucket, with just over a minute to play. Tim Cone's squad enjoyed a slim 19-16 advantage after the first period.
Barako Bull made only two field goals in the last seven minutes of the first quarter.
In the second, Barako Bull found their shot from beyond the arc and got contributions from Allein Maliksi, Jonas Villanueva and Macapagal. But with Mallari at the helm, the Mixers found cutters scoring at the rim, 29-29.
With under five minutes to play, Barako Bull started to shake off San Mig Coffee. Mick Pennisi drilled in five unanswered points, and Maliksi hit a turnaround jumper over Joe Devance for some separation.
Despite their troubles on offense, the Mixers were able to save face with a spirited run in the final two-and-a-half minutes of the first half. San Mig Coffee broke what was nearly a five minute drought with a 7-2 run, backed by four from Mark Pingris, to trail by two at the break, 38-36.
Asean Basketball League veteran Evan Brock (R) skies over the San Mig Coffee Mixers for a lay-up. KC Cruz
When play resumed, Urbiztondo rained down eight points, including two triples, in a 16-8 salvo for Barako Bull that brought the lead to double digits, 54-44.
With five minutes to play in the quarter, the Mixers broke a five-minute drought from the field with a Rafi Reavis lay-up. Limiting Barako to one attempt per possession, San Mig Coffee's penetration whittled their deficit down to two, as Mark Barocca and Leo Najorda found looks in the paint with a minute and a half to play. Brock added a split from the stripe moments later, as Barako Bull finished the third quarter leading only by three, 55-52.
Similar to the first period, Barako Bull were shut out of the closing minutes of the quarter. They couldn't make shots from the field in the final 5:30 of the third period.
In the fourth quarter, Villanueva and Brock combined for the Bulls' first seven points, thanks to their aggressive moves at the rim. Meanwhile, rookie Lester Alvarez and PJ Simon added a trey each to keep the Mixers close, as a Pingris hook shot pulled San Mig Coffee within two. The Mixers finally took the lead when their interior defense closed ranks, leading to easy buckets for DeVance and Simon, 64-62, with under seven minutes to play.
But San Mig Coffee struggled to gain separation from their opponents, getting only a single bucket courtesy of Yap while Barako shot blanks from the floor. Urbiztondo nailed a huge triple with four minutes to play for a brief 67-66 lead, but a Villanueva drive was sandwiched by a Barroca bucket and a Reavis and-one, tying the game at 69-all with under two minutes remaining.
Three-point shooting was key for Barako Bull in this game. They shot a scorching 11-of-27 from beyond the arc (40.7 percent), while San Mig Coffee made only 6-of-21 (28.6 percent). They also outpaced the Mixers in transition baskets, 14-6.
San Mig Coffee dished out more assists (23-17) and won the rebounding battle (48-40), including a 15-8 margin on the offensive glass. But the extra shots didn't translate into more points for the Mixers; they made only 31-of-75 from the floor (41.3 percent) against Barako Bull's 28-of-65 mark (43.1 percent).
James Yap led all scorers with 19 points and a 4-of-8 clip from downtown. Rafi Reavis had 13 points and eight rebounds, while PJ Simon tallied 11 points and 11 boards. - RAF, GMA News
The scores:
BARAKO BULL 79 - Brock 18, Urbiztondo 17, Villanueva 16, Macapagal 8, Seigle 8, Maliksi 7, Pennisi 5, Duncil 0, Kramer 0, Allado 0.
SAN MIG COFFEE 75 - Yap 19, Reavis 13, Simon 11, Najorda 8, Devance 6, Pingris 6, Mallari 5, Barroca 4, Alvarez 3, Gonzales 0.
Quarter scoring: 16-19, 38-36, 55-52, 79-75
