OCTOBER 12, 2011

• 
  

  GAME

  9

  	B-MEG Llamados
  	Alaska Aces




• SCORES	81
  	75

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• 
  

  GAME

  8

  	Meralco Bolts
  	Shopinas.com Clickers




• SCORES	79
  	72

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• L.A. TENORIO: CHASING A DREAM

Like all the great PBA point guards before him, Alaska playmaker LA Tenorio has put a giant of a
goal to aim for right before him.

And the former Ateneo Blue Eagle star has chosen the one against whom all others who play the No. 1
spot are measured  – the ‘Flying A’ Johnny Abarrientos.

“Yon ang gusto kong posisyon pag dating ng panahon, yung posisyon ni Johnny,” said Tenorio after
watching in awe as Alaska, with team owner Wilfred Steven Uytengsu, team manager Joaqui Trillo and
coach Tim Cone present, retired Abarrientos’ No. 14 jersey during the Aces’ 25th anniversary
celebration late last month.

• CONE NAILS 1ST WIN OVER FORMER TEAM

Coach Tim Cone earned his first win outside the Alaska Milk organization at the expense of Alaska
Milk itself.

Cone prevailed over his former team in their first meeting after their parting with the B-Meg
Llamados coming from behind to beat the Aces, 81-75, in the PBA Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta
Coliseum Wednesday night.

“Nag-usap kaming mga players. Alam namin na gustong-gustong nilang talunin si coach Tim. Ayaw
namin mapahiya ang coach namin,” said B-Meg top gun James Yap.

The whole B-Meg organization and the Llamados’ fans rallied behind Cone, showing up wearing
necktie to best demonstrate their support to their new coach.

Player Of The Week

• CABAGNOT BIGGEST BOOST FOR PETRON

THE PBA Philippine Cup may be stuffed with explosive newcomers, but trust some veterans to step up
the most at the crunch.

Such was the case of Petron Blaze’s Alex Cabagnot, who did much more than just be a playmaker,
lifting the Boosters to back-to-back wins and earning for himself the Accel PBA Press Corps’
Player of the Week citation for the season-opening period Oct. 2 to 9.

The southpaw point guard consistently shone the brightest for the Governors Cup champion which
continued to be undermanned, making the crucial points that pointed Petron to victories over B-MEG
and Barako Bull and into the early lead.

• SHOPINAS HOPES TO CLICK VS. DEPLETED BOLTS

MERALCO coach Ryan Gregorio was hopeful when guard Sol Mercado stepped onto the practice court
Tuesday. The feeling was immediately replaced by a discouraging finding.

“He is not (yet) ready,” related Gregorio.

The news should be a welcome one for newcomer Shopinas.com, which the undermanned Bolts face
Wednesday in their PBA Philippine matchup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

• ACES EAGER TO COME OUT VS. CONE, LLAMADOS

There should be pleasantries but expect dagger looks as coach Tim Cone occupies his seat away from
the Alaska Milk Aces.

They will now be on opposite ends of the floor, trying to beat one another, and the battle could
only be very emotional.

Alaska team owner Wilfred Steven Uytengsu promising to catch the game from a trip abroad indicates
how big the game is for him.

The keenly awaited match is set at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

• GINEBRA SPOILS BANAL DEBUT AS ACES CHIEF TACTICIAN

Published on October 9, 2011

ANTIPOLO -- Barangay Ginebra established control towards the end of the third quarter and roared on
to pull off an 83-72 win over the Alaska Aces in the 2011-12 PBA Philippine Cup at the Ynares Sports
Center here Sunday.
 
Nino Canaleta, Mark Caguioa and Jayjay Helterbrand stood at the forefront of Ginebra’s attack as
the Kings cut loose from a tight game in the third period and never let up to score the rousing
victory witnessed by a crowd of over 10,000 in the Antipolo City playing venue.
 
“It’s not as easy as it seems. We just caught them when they’re still on a
feeling-each-other-out stage. They had a coaching change and acquired new players. It will take time
for them to get accustomed to one another,” said comebacking Ginebra coach Siot Tanquingcen.
 
“Malakas pa rin ang materyales. Naka-tyempo lang kami talaga,” added Tanquingcen, prevailing
over new Alaska mentor Joel Banal.
 
Canaleta and Caguioa presided over Ginebra’s romp in the third quarter then Helterbrand had a
crucial seven-point explosion to step up the Kings’ breakaway in the fourth.
 
The Aces tried to mount a rally but the Kings were undaunted, unleashing a 9-3 run to all but settle
the outcome of the game at 81-66 with a little over a minute left to play.
 
The Kings eventually broke into the win-column in the season after dropping a close game versus the
Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, 93-94, on opening day.
 

• TNT TOO MUCH FOR MERALCO

Published on October 7, 2011

ANTIPOLO – Two years after playing one game with Burger King as the top draft pick, Japeth Aguilar
returned in the pro league with aplomb, making a huge impact in Talk n Text’s rousing debut in the
37th PBA season at the Ynares Sports Center here Friday night.
 
Aguilar literally and figuratively towered above anybody else in his PBA comeback, pouring in 27
points to lead the Tropang Texters to a 98-80 rout of the Meralco Bolts.
 
Talk n Text coach Chot Reyes was hardly surprised of Aguilar's overpowering performance, saying he
knows that the 6-foot-9 behemoth can play that well.
 
“No other Filipino player has that height and his talent,” said Reyes.
 
On whether he’s only suited in the PBA but not in FIBA Asia, Reyes stressed his belief that
Aguilar can play anywhere. Reyes also said it’s the job of the coach to harness the player’s
talent.
 
The Talk n Text mentor, however, does believe that Aguilar fits their style of play.
 
“We love to run up and down, and Japeth loves to run up and down. If he can pick his spots and
understand how the opponents play, he’ll really perform well,” said Reyes of their prized
acquisition.
 
Used sparingly by coach Rajko Toroman at Smart Gilas, Aguilar appeared to be a man on mission in his
first game with the Texters.
 
The Texters put the game away from the Bolts early with Aguilar outscoring the entire Meralco team,
14-6, in the second quarter.
 
Aguilar intercepted a pass by Gabby Espinas and slammed it home off Jason Ballesteros to highlight
Talk n Text’s second-quarter onslaught that gave the Texters a 47-28 bulge at the turn.
 

• DAVID WAXES HOT AS POWERADE SPOILS SHOPINAS DEBUT

Published on October 5, 2011

POWERADE’s top draft pick may be sitting it out but there’s still the usual go-to guy for the
Tigers to turn to and set off their PBA Philippine Cup campaign on a high note.

Despite some run-ins with pesky Ogie Menor, Gary David exploded for 31 points as Powerade blew hot
and cold and then hot again in bucking JV Casio’s absence and notching a 98-87 victory over gritty
Shopinas.com Wednesday at the Cuneta Astrodome. 

Celino Cruz, Joshua Vanlandingham and rookie Marcio Lassiter also churned up at least 10 points each
as the Tigers regained in the game’s last 13 minutes the fiery form that had them racing to two
early 24-point leads.

“I’m happy that we won but I’m definitely not satisfied with the way we played defense,”
said coach Bo Perasol after his team joined opening day winner Rain or Shine on top of the
leaderboard.

“We could have limited Shopinas more,” he added. “I was telling them that Shopinas is a new
team and if we’re going to struggle against them we’re definitely going to struggle with the
stronger teams. 

“We need more hard work and put our mind into our goal, which is to defend as a team. I just know
it takes a lot of commitment to do that since it’s not as popular as offense. It needs hard work.
It’s not going to be comfortable.”