In a game that was up for grabs for the entire 48-minute stretch, the Alaska Aces came out on top to complete the PBA Commissioner’s Cup finalists, as they squeaked past the Meralco Bolts, 76-70, in Game 5 of their semifinal series at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Wednesday evening.
In a low-scoring affair, the Aces entered the final period up by six by outscoring the Bolts, 19-11, in the third quarter. However, Alaska struggled to defend without fouling, entering the penalty situation within five minutes which favored Meralco in their fourth quarter run.
In Meralco’s surge, they missed the services of Chris Newsome due to foul trouble. They managed to erase a 62-54 Alaska lead with eight minutes to go in regulation. The teams went back-and-forth thanks to the offensive spurts by their guards. In the next minutes, Cliff Hodge and Jarred Dillinger both made an and-one layup, good enough to give Meralco a 67-66 advantage.
Afterwards, Calvin Abueva’s brute hustle shifted the lead back to the Aces with a tough putback. The Aces would take control from that point on, as Meralco went blank on their next possessions. Abueva, together with RJ Jazul, drained pivotal free throws to extend the lead to multiple possessions. An opportunity for a comeback was shut down for the Bolts, as Hodge and Arinze Onuaku missed their charity attempts.
For Coach Alex Compton, he will return to the Finals against the team he had first coached in the PBA. Going up against the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, Compton knows he has to overcome a tough obstacle once again to finally avoid being a bridesmaid finisher.
“We’ll play hard but geez, playing hard isn’t enough against Rain or Shine. They’re great. I love that whole organization, that’s where i started coaching but it’s gonna be tough. They’re playing so well right now, they’re so deep. I’m gonna enjoy this for about five minutes. We’re gonna go back, have a coaches meeting and scout Rain or Shine.”
He talked more the team’s sturdiness in this conference, after having bowed out to the San Miguel Beermen in the All-Filipino tournament, wherein they blew their opportunity after being up 3-0 in the series. “People keep asking me about last playoffs (vs. SMB). I haven’t thought about it and our guys haven’t thought about it as they just keep fighting.”
“As a coach, I’m just proud of our guys. We had grit, resilience, perseverance. Yung sipag di pwedeng mawala. We were playing a lot of guys and coach everybody. Just really proud of them,” he added.
Calvin Abueva finished with 19 points, eight rebounds, and two steals in an all-around outing off the bench. After the match, ‘The Beast’ opened up on how the team had focused on getting the championship for the season, and was pleased with the crew’s effort in the do-or-die outing.
“Game 4 talagang nag-struggle kami. Binigay namin lahat, pero wala talaga. Sa kanila talaga. Buti na lang dito sa Game 5 inisip lang namin na wala ng Game 6, wala ng Game 7. Eto, maganda naman kinalabasan. Hinahangad talaga namin mag champion kaya siguro nakapasok kami tonight. Eto na yung chance na yun.”
Despite shooting a poor 2/14 clip from downtown, Alaska out-rebounded Meralco, 48-40, and scored more from turnovers, 21-14.
Dillinger had 18 points to pace the Bolts. Onuaku tallied 15 points and 18 rebounds. The two imports went silent offensively in the final period, with Alaska’s Rob Dozier ending the night with 14 markers on 13 shot attempts.
Game 1 of the Commissioner’s Cup Finals will be played on Friday, 7pm, at the same venue.
The scores:
Alaska (76) – Abueva 19, Banchero 18, Dozier 14, Jazul 9, Thoss 8, Baclao 5, Hontiveros 3, Baguio 0, Dela Cruz 0, Exciminiano 0
Meralco (70) – Dillinger 18, Onuaku 15, Amer 12, Hodge 9, Caram 6, Faundo 4, Hugnatan 4, Newsome 2, Alapag 0, Bono 0, Buenafe 0
Quarterscores: 22-22, 37-39, 56-50, 76-70
