ICYMI: GINEBRA DOMINATES, TNT ACHES, AND CAGUIOA MAKES ARANETA SHAKE

ICYMI: GINEBRA DOMINATES, TNT ACHES, AND CAGUIOA MAKES ARANETA SHAKE
BY Aaron Atayde



Never Say Die.
Who would’ve freaking thought? Who would’ve said that this team could four straight elimination game? Who would’ve thought that they would make their way into the Finals?
They did. They never doubted it even for a second.
Ladies and gentlemen, Barangay Ginebra San Miguel is back on the big stage.
After forcing a fifth and final game, LA Tenorio and the rest of the Kings knew that this was their time. Momentum was on their side. The fans at SMART-Araneta Coliseum will be waiting to explode with excitement for them. It was their seat in the Finals to lose at this point, and they were not willing to give it up.
A dominating effort in the first half of play led to a 20 point lead going into the break. It seemed like it was going to be enough, but the tenacity and experience of the Tropang Texters kept them in the game. Knowing that they have been here so many times before, Jayson Castro put his team on his shoulders and did what he does best; run and score.
Little by little, the lead started to shrink. More and more Ginebra looked like they were about to blow a huge lead once again. But the driving force of this team didn’t allow them. The one thing that kept the Kings from faltering all conference long pushed them into their second wind. Where did that boost come from? The 21,000 people in attendance.
Ginebra pulled away once again behind LA Tenorio, Mac Baracael, and Vernon Macklin’s play and the rest is history.
(PS. Shout out to The Rim Protectah, Kerby Raymundo for his four blocks!)



Kelly Williams, Jared Dillinger, Jimmy Alapag, Ranidel de Ocampo.
No, I am not randomly saying the starting five of Talk ‘N Text sans their import. I am stating the four players that were out of this game because of injuries. Yes, Jimmy Alapag gave spot minutes out of sheer guts and the heart of a champion, but it wasn’t enough. How different would this series have been if TNT had all of their pieces? Very different, but there is nothing that can be done about it now.
When the Tropa were making their huge comeback in the third quarter, imagine if Jimmy hit a big three to pull even closer (because you know he would’ve). When Vernon Macklin was starting to get John Ferriols in foul trouble, imagine if Coach Norman Black could get Machine Gun Kelly off of the bench to body him up (which he most definitely would’ve been able to do). Instead of having Rich Alvarez and Aaron Aban getting spot minutes, what could’ve happened if JD and the EuroPinoy were playing instead?
Like I said earlier, nothing can be done now, but we wish them all the best on a speedy recovery as they will be wearing our country’s colors at the FIBA-Asia tournament.



And as the series was about to come to a close, what good is a story without an epic ending? With just seconds remaining in the game, Coach Alfrancis Chua looked at the reigning MVP that has been sitting out due to a knee injury, and gave a little present to the over 21,000 in attendance as he sent in Mark Caguioa.
The Barangay Dome could not control their emotions. They went apeshit. They went insane just at the sight of Mark the Spark taking off his warmer. To sum it up, SLAM Magazine writer, Chuck Araneta put it best.

If you were there to see it, you are one lucky person. You got to see the storybook ending to a series that couldn’t be written any better.
Photo c/o InterAKTV

Source:
SlamonlinePH