Import Denzel Bowles proved to be an unstoppable force in the lane as he towed the B–Meg Derby Ace Llamados to a 90-84 overtime win against the defending champion Talk ’N Text Tropang Texters in Game 7 of the 2012 PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals at the packed Smart Araneta Coliseum yesterday.
Bowles played like a man possessed and logged in a performance for the ages as he scored 39 points, grabbed 21 rebounds and added three blocked shots.
The most telling stat though was the two pressure-packed freethrows that the 23-year-old import sank with 1.2 seconds left in regulation that tied the game at 76-all and forced an extra quarter.
With the disqualification of Talk ’N Text import Donnell Harvey due to fouls late in th fourth and the injuries to key players like Ryan Reyes (knee) and Jimmy Alapag (cramps), B-Meg dominated the overtime session to complete the Llamados’ inspiring comeback victory.
For a moment, it seemed as if the Texters were poised to take the crown and keep their bid for a grandslam this season alive as they went ahead, 69-60, midway through the fourth period.
Alapag, the reigning MVP, woke up from the doldrums and finished with a team-high 29 points. In the previous six games, Alapag scored no more than 12 points. He had a monster game yesterday but had to sit out the latter stages of the fourth due to cramps.
The Llamados got going after a three-pointer by James Yap, who was eventually named Finals MVP. B-Meg was still behind, 68-74, after an uncontested layup by Ali Peek off a pass from Alapag with exactly two minutes remaining.
The Llamados climbed out of that hole with a tip-in by Bowles off a Yap miss and a transition layup by Josh Urbitztondo to peg the score at 72-74.
Later on, after Joe Devance scored on a putback with 14.7 ticks and Peek just made two of his four freethrows, Yap drove to the lane and attempted a layup but missed. He got the loose ball and passed to Bowles, who fished a foul off Kelly Williams inside the lane. Bowles made the pressure-packed freethrows to send the game to a five-minute extension.
Bowles finsihed off the Texters in overtime, scoring 11 including a power move with 56.8 seconds left that pushed B-Meg ahead, 86-81. The game slipped away for good for Talk ’N Text after Alapag passed the ball out of bounds in the next possession.