Top-seeded Talk ‘N Text spoils Petron’s championship bid, forces do-or-die Game 7
Rediscovering their old deadly form, the Talk ‘N Text Tropang Texters kept their grand-slam bid alive after dumping the Petron Blaze Boosters, 104-78, in Game 6 of their championship showdown for the 36th PBA Governors’ Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Texters tied the series at 3-all, forcing a winner-take-all Game 7 on Sunday.
Talk ‘N Text got an inspired game from a hurting Jayson Castro, who bucked an injured right knee to deliver 19 points.
Re-activating Maurice Baker also proved crucial as the sweet-shooting import provided the needed spark, something that Scottie Reynolds failed to give in the first five games of the series.
Baker scattered 18 points, 14 coming in the third period, where the Texters took full control of the match.
Ranidel de Ocampo was also big for the Texters, firing the bulk of his game-high 21 points in the first half where Talk ‘N Text started puling away.
Talk N Text brought a 55-43 lead into the third and Baker started hitting one basket after another, allowing his team to lead by as many as 20 points.
Jimmy Alapag, who scored 16 markers, helped close out the Boosters by starting the fourth with eight straight points as the Texters put the game beyond Petron’s with a whopping 90-62 lead in the final seven minutes.
Arwind Santos scored 19 markers to lead the Boosters, who will have another crack of foiling the Texters’ grand slam dream on Sunday.
Clearly struggling in Petron’s side was import Anthony Grundy, who scored just five points on a horrible shooting display. Danny Ildefonso added 14 for the Blaze Boosters.
