Chooks Gilas Pilipinas faced a daunting, veteran-laden PBA Luzon All-Stars on Friday night, but it was the younger Nationals who pulled off one huge surprise.
Gilas bravely crawled back from a deep hole, catching the much-older Luzon side off-guard en route to a rousing 122-111 upset in the Luzon leg of the 2017 PBA All-Star Week at the Quezon Convention Center in Lucena, Quezon.
For the second straight time, rookie Matthew Wright was adjudged the game’s Most Valuable Player with an output of 15 points on 14 shots along with a game-high seven assists.
Gilas went down by as much as 17, 86-69, early in the third canto, but the tables turned in their favor after they fired up a furious scoring spree late in the final frame, much to the shock of homecoming Luzon coach Leo Austria and Co.
Lagging by six, 111-105, with 4:46 remaining, the Nationals then torched the net with a blazing 17-0 run, sparked by a Kevin Ferrer lay-up and punctuated by a Carl Cruz and-one play to settle the score, 122-111, with 37.5 left to play.
The All-Stars still tried to create a miracle despite the time not on their side anymore, but back-to-back misses by Ranidel De Ocampo and Marcio Lassiter from rainbow country sealed the morale-boosting win for Gilas.
Gilas received plenty of support especially from the Cadets, with Jonathan Grey leading the pack with 19 markers. Mike Tolomia had 15 points and five boards, while Cruz finished with 13 markers.
Frontcourt specialists Troy Rosario and Raymond Almazan also boosted Gilas’ offense with 12 and 10 poinrs, respectively. The two stretched bigs also combined for 16 rebounds.
The Luzon side were led by Japeth Aguilar with a double-double of 18 points and 10 rebounds, while his fellow Kapampangan Calvin Abueva also made his presence felt with 16 markers
Stanley Pringle chipped in 15 markers on a 63 percent clip for Luzon, while Alex Cabagnot supplied 12 markers on 10 shots. Marcio Lassiter flirted with a double-double of 12 points — all from triples — and nine rebounds.
With the Luzon All-Stars’ loss, the Sariaya, Quezon-born San Miguel Beermen head coach Austria has yet to win in front of his fellow Quezon natives. His losing skid in his hometown now stretches to 0-3.
Gilas’ bread-and-butter on offense against the All-Stars was their scorching barrage of three-pointers, as they sank 17 of their 46 shots from beyond-the-arc. Both squads dished the ball with an identical 28 assists.
The Nationals’ last assignment in the All-Star Week will be against the PBA Visayas All-Stars on Sunday, April 30, 7:00 PM at the Hoops Dome in Cebu, ahead of the SEABA Championship for Men.
The Scores:
Chooks Gilas (122) – Grey 19, Tolomia 15, Wright 15, Cruz 13, Rosario 12, Almazan 10, Revilla 9, Maliksi 9, Ferrer 8, Torres 8, Guinto 2, Vosotros 2, Gotladera 0, Daquioag 0.
PBA Luzon (111) – Aguilar 18, Abueva 16, Pringle 15, Cabagnot 12, Lassiter 12, Washington 9, De Ocampo 9, Santos 8, Lee 5, Tenorio 3, Caguioa 2, Castro 2.
Quarterscores: 30-34, 55-62, 85-94, 122-111.
