Jaypee Belencion scored a personal conference-high of 27 points to help the Tanduay Rhum Masters oust UP-QRS/Jam Liner, 99-89 in the PBA D-League Aspirants Cup quarter-finals Thursday at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig.
Belencion shot 7-for-14 from three-point area while four of his teammates scored in double-digits as the Rhum Masters advanced to the best-of-three semi-finals starting next week.
Lucas Tagarda added 14 points while Adrian Santos and Jeoff Javillonar chipped in 13 and 12 points, respectively.
The Rhum Masters will take on Cafe France while Caida Tiles and Phoenix Petroleum duel in the other semi-finals pairing.
“Matagal na kami rito. It’s been a while. Second appearance pa lang namin sa semis since inception ng D-League. (Siguro) poetic justice,” Tanduay head coach Lawrence Tiongson said. “We just got lucky in the end. Hats off (to them) for pushing us to the wall.”
Belencion hit four triples in the opening quarter alone, while Javillonar made two of his own as Tanduay raced to a 24-12 lead. The Rhum Masters made six out of their first seven attempts from the outside as they took control of the early goings.
Gelo Alolino then brought the Maroons back in the game, scoring 11 points in the second quarter which saw UP-QRS/Jam Liner close on a 21-7 run.
A Kevin Ferrer trey pushed the Maroons ahead, 45-41 entering the halftime break. Belencion and Santos, however, joined hands for Tanduay in the third quarter to bring the Rhum Masters back to life.
Tanduay outscored UP-QRS/Jam Liner, 25-11 in the third period before opening the fourth frame on a 9-0 run to extend its lead to 75-56.
The Maroons made things interesting towards the end, as Alolino and Ferrer made threes to cut the Tanduay lead down to 93-87 with just over a minute left, but the Rhum Masters were able to stave them off.
Tiongson added though his squad has defeated the Bakers in the past, it will not pose any kind of advantage entering the semi-finals.
“Throw all those stuff out of the window. Cafe France, nakapagchampion na yan. We will have our hands full. But we live to fight for another day. We will just get back to the drawing board,” he said. “The important is we are still alive.”
Alolino led the Maroons with 24 points while Raymond Aguilar contributed 17 points, five rebounds, and three assists. Raul Soyud finished with a double-double of 15 points and 13 rebounds.
The Scores:
Tanduay (99) – Belencion 27, Tagarda 14, Santos 13, Javillonar 12, Lingganay 10, Llagas 8, Acuna 4, Celda 4, Pessumal 4, Wetherell 3.
UP-QRS/Jam Liner (89) – Alolino 24, Aguilar 17, Ferrer 15, Soyud 15, Desiderio 6, Lim 6, Batino 4, Villarias 2.
Quarterscores: 28-21, 41-45, 66-56, 99-89.
