PBA: Air21 remains hot, beats GlobatPort

The Air21 Express continued their winning ways with an 87-72 victory over a skidding GlobalPort Batang Pier team, Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. Led by their prolific import Michael Dunigan, the Express used a decisive 28-10 third quarter to turn a seven-point halftime deficit into an 11-point lead heading into the final period. Overall, the Express had to climb back from a 14-point deficit and won by 15 markers for an astounding 29-point turnaround. "It's nice to win four in a row," said Air21 head coach Franz Pumaren. "We really had to work on the defensive end and I'm glad the team responded after the halftime break." Air21's four-game winning streak in fact started with a win over GlobalPort. "We're lucky again because every time we play Global, they have a new import," Pumaren said. "Their import has less time to prepare and of course jetlag is still a factor." The Express improved to 5-5, while the Batang Pier stay glued to the bottom of the standings, slumping to 2-8. GlobalPort's newest foreign player, Sylvester Morgan, scored a respectable 23 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, but it was not really enough to give his team the victory. Morgan was out-performed by Dunigan who totaled 22 points, 15 rebounds, eight assists, and three steals. "Michael showed his all-around skill tonight," Pumaren said. "We knew from the start that he can score but his passing in this game allowed the other guys to score from the outside." Coming from big wins over the powerhouse Alaska Aces and San Mig Coffee Mixers, the Express were in for a letdown early in the first quarter, but they quickly found their old form come the second. The GlobalPort Batang Pier started the game wanting to finally stop their six-game losing skid. With Japeth Aguilar and Sol Mercado dropping six points apiece in the first quarter, they led 20-13 over the Air21 Express. Mercado had driven to the basket and converted a difficult left-handed lay-up to give Batang Pier a 20-11 lead, but Dunigan was able to get a basket on the next possession, which led to GlobalPort holding a seven point lead at the end of the first. Willie Miller continued his inspired play in this game as he scored 16 points in just 28 minutes. The problem for GlobalPort was that outside of Morgan, Aguilar, Miller, Mercado, and Gary David, they got next to nothing in terms of points from the rest of the team. Miller, playing off the bench, then carried the offense for Batang Pier. He scored on a fast break lay-up at the 9:21 mark for a 26-15 GlobalPort lead. Miller then exchanged triples with Air21's Mike Cortez for a 29-18 count. Renren Ritualo finally heated up late in the second quarter as he connected with two triples to trim the GlobalPort lead to nine at 36-27. The Express had multiple shots late in the second quarter to cut the lead, but they were unable to do so. GlobalPort held a 41-34 lead heading into the break. Aguilar led all scorers at the half with 10 points while also getting four rebounds and two blocks. For Air21, Dunigan led the scoring with 15 points while adding 13 rebounds in the first 24 minutes of play. The Express unleashed a furious rally early in the third quarter. They tied the ball game at 42 with more than eight minutes remaining. The Express then built a 10-point lead, 52-42, capped by a three-point play from Michael Dunigan. Two free throws from Sylvester Morgan at the 5:15 mark finally stopped the bleeding for Batang Pier, but the momentum was already with the Express at that point. Wynne Arboleda connected with a fast break three-point shot with only 2.8 seconds remaining in the third quarter to give Air21 a 62-51 lead heading into the payoff period. Arboleda canned three triples in the quarter while Dunigan and Canaleta combined for 10 points to outscore GlobalPort 28-10. In the third quarter, Batang Pier shot a horrible 14.3% from the field while allowing 45.5% shooting for Air21. There were early fireworks in the fourth quarter as Mark Yee and Ogie Menor were called for technical fouls. Arboleda then connected with another triple early in the fourth quarter to give the Express a 67-53 lead. Mark Isip and Bitoy Omolon followed this up with two more baskets to break the game wide open with an 18-point lead. GlobalPort head coach Junel Baculi called for time, but their offense remained stagnant. Omolon made them pay again with an and-one play for a 74-53 lead with less than eight minutes left in the game. Miller tried to make a game out of it as he scored back-to-back baskets to trim the lead down to 17. However, triples from Canaleta kept the Batang Pier at bay. With this loss, GlobalPort has now dropped seven straight games after starting the Commissioner's Cup with a 2-1 win-loss tally. "The next few games will be crucial for us because there are a lot of teams clogged in the middle right now," Pumaren said. "It's a good thing that we can get some rest before taking on Rain or Shine this [next] Sunday." After Dunigan, four of the Express scored in double digits. Nino Canaleta scored 14 points all in the second half. Mike Cortez and Nelbert Omolon added 14 and 13, respectively. - RAF/AMD, GMA News