PBA: Alaska Aces beats Coca-Cola Tigers, 117-106

The Alaska Aces continued its steady rise in the 2007-08 Smart PBA Philippine Cup with a masterful 117-106 win over the Coca-Cola Tigers at the Araneta Coliseum Wednesday night. Newly-acquired center Asi Taulava had a double-double as early as the first half for the Tigers, but it was not enough to prevent his new team from losing as they remained with a single win in the conference. He continued to wear his lucky 88 jersey number, but it still didn’t stop the Tigers from losing a franchise-worst eighth straight game. Taulava tallied 33 points and cornered 17 rebounds in his first game in a Coca-Cola uniform, but it still wasn’t enough to save the Tigers from dropping deeper down the cellar with a 1-8 slate. Taulava's output was his highest since chalking up a career-high 51 points for Talk 'N' Text on May 16, 2004, to help the Phone Pals beat the Purefoods 131-105 in the 2004 Fiesta Conference. Mark Telan tallied 24 points and rookie Ronjay Buenafe added 18, including a 3-pointer that pushed the Tigers within 104-111 and made the game interesting with 67 seconds to play. Jeffrey Cariaso, Alaska's senior citizen but playing with the energy of a 22-year-old, scattered 26 points to show the way for the Aces. Willie Miller, the reigning MVP, had 25 and Mike Cortez added 20 as the Aces notched their second straight win and improved their standing to a 6-4 record overall. No other Aces managed to score in double digits, although Reynel Hugnatan made his presence felt off the boards with 11 rebounds. It was practically a walk in the park for the Aces, who hardly encountered a challenge from a team desperately struggling to survive the eliminations. As a testament to it, Tim Cone, the usually agitated Alaska coach, watched the action calmly from the sidelines and didn't seem to worry a bit the entire game. Alaska seized control late in the opening quarter with a 17-2 run that turned a two-point Coca-Cola lead into a 32-19 advantage. With Cariaso, Miller, and Cortez combining for 43 points, the Aces stretched the margin to 65-48 at halftime. "I really though we had great rhythm," Cone said. "We shot the ball extremely well almost the entire game until we lost our rhythm a little bit down the stretch." Cone said the trade that sent Taulava to the Tigers in exchange for Ali Peek prompted them to focus on the game. "We know that Coke is struggling as a team and without the trade we would have come out a little overconfident," the Alaska coach admitted. "But hearing that Asi had been traded, it woke us up. Everything changed. We did prepare for this game because we know what Asi can bring to the that team." The blowout victory though could be a lull before the storm for the Aces. The Aces will take a trip to Lucena City in Quezon on Friday for a rematch with defending champion Barangay Ginebra. The Aces ruled over the Kings in overtime during their first meeting but Cone said their date on Saturday will be very interesting. "It's gonna be tough," he said. The scores Alaska (117): Cariaso 26, Miller 25, Cortez 20, Bono 9, Quinahan 8, Hugnatan 8, Ferriols 6, dela Cruz 6, Cabatu 4, Laure 3, Thoss 2, Capus 0 Coca-Cola (106): Taulava 33, Telan 24, Buenafe 18, Duremdes 11, Cabagnot 7, Dimaunahan 7, Enrile 3, Caceres 2, Tolomia 1, Isip 0, Misolas 0 Quarters: 32-19, 65-48, 94-74, 117-106

- GMANews.TV