Gin Kings stay alive

Gin Kings stay alive

Said it before, will say it again: anytime you complement Mike "Cool Cat" Cortez with a knockdown shooter (Nino Canaleta), he's bound to get numbers, the other guy's going to blow up and their team is going to win.

Ren Ren Ritualo at La Salle, Willie Miller at Alaska and now, with their backs against the wall the Cool Cat finds the sharp shooting Canaleta. Say what you will about the once flashy, side show slam dunker, but he has worked his ass off to become the shooter her is today. His defense (once his calling card in college ala fellow UE alum Hans Thiele) has dipped a bit, but you'd take that if in return are net-swooshing threes that look so effortless (from now on, based on how effortless he shoots the ball from deep, Canaleta gets his own KKS moniker: Big Easy. )



A couple of factors went the Kings' way in their win over sister team BMeg Llamados. The referees let them play much like the Barako Bull-Talk 'n' Text series (read: overly physical), tempers flared and Marc Pingris was thrown out of the game for a rather idiotic play that you can't really argue against (anytime you hit a guy over the head and not make a play for the ball, you're going to be called for a Flagrant).

Were there adjustments made?

Not really. The Kings played the same way, the rotation was the same but the calls were being done in their favor. A couple of times in the first half this writer saw blatant hand checks/ swats that the refs didn't call and some WWE-type physicality in the paint that also didn't get the refs' attention. From a bruising standpoint, the Kings have more guys who are willing to hit and get hit (Rudy Hatfield, Jackson Vroman, Mike Cortez) than the Llamados. No one would ever mistake James Yap, PJ Simon or Josh Urbiztondo as guys who are willing to get hit inside the paint. Cortez? The man who ended with a 17 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists statline was fighting like a dog for rebounds-- the fieriest stand we've seen of Cortez since his DLSU stomping days.

Canaleta often found himself open from the outside, something that should make BMeg coach Tim Cone think twice about who to send to guard the sweet shooting Ginebra big man. JC Intal will give you offense (like he did in the 3rd quarter), but he's always been a tool defensively. Perhaps it's time for Cone to switch Pingris up front like he has done during the Llamados' playoff run and stick him on Canaleta full time? This will allow him to go big and let Joe DeVance man the pivot with import Denzel Bowles.

Another player who came up huge for the Kings is rookie Dylan Ababou. Always making the right plays, sticking James Yap on defense (Yap has struggled so far in this series save for that 2nd quarter three point berserker binge of his) and putting up the points when needed- he's the Kings version of Chris Lutz. Never getting plays called for him, but always finding ways to contribute on the floor. Think 2012 version of Purefoods great Rey Evangelista.

And for all the venom that has been thrown Vroman's way, he contributed to the Kings' cause with some nice assists and extra passes that led to easy points for his teammates. He drove twice late in the game which surprised this writer since he's been timid so far in the Playoffs, but right now, since he's not going to be replaced (too late really), anything that they can get from Vroman is a bonus.

Can the Kings really win three straight and move into the Finals?

Don't bank on it.

And really, where is Enrico Villanueva? Did that Game 1 punk out by Pingris force the SMART Gilas 2 prospect to hide on the Ginebra bench? Definitely not something you want to see from a guy who's supposed to play enforcer for your national team.

Source: KKS