Air21 overruns crippled RoS

MANILA, Philippines - Air21, riding the crest of a breakthrough showing in the recent PBA Commissioner’s Cup, continued to make progress, hacking out a first-ever win over Rain or Shine with a wire-to-wire 103-96 drubbing of the Elasto Painters in the PBA PLDT Home Telpad Governors Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum last night.

Playing with the competitiveness that brought them within a win of the second conference finals, the Express pummeled the injury-hit Rain or Shine side and went on to nail their first win in their 11 head-on duels since the Bert Lina-owned ballclub joined the league in 2011 under the Shopinas.com banner.

The Express trailed just once at 0-2, before quickly finding their rhythm, pulling away at 28-15 and dominating throughout the Rain or Shine team which played minus injured players JR Quiñahan, Jervy Cruz and Jeric Teng, and coach Yeng Guiao, who’s again on a business trip abroad.

Air21 led by as many as 17 points at 76-59 and survived a long stretch in the fourth quarter the team played minus the foul-troubled import Dominique Sutton.

In finally pulling one over Rain or Shine, Meralco is now the only team that Air21 has yet to beat in franchise history.

“I told the players let us consider each game as a playoff game, and this is a good start,” said Air21 coach Franz Pumaren.

“Our mindset is to improve on our standing in the last conference. Our goal is to prove that what we’d accomplished last conference is not a fluke, and that we’re contenders now,” Pumaren also said.

“Once you taste success, it’s hard to let go,” said Air21 behemoth Asi Taulava.

“We want to come out there to be physical. We want to pile up wins. We want to build up momentum and stay focused,” Taulava also said.

Taulava, a Best Player of the Conference contender last conference, sustained his personal romp, coming through with 19 points and 14 rebounds to power the team to victory.

Barangay Ginebra began life playing the triangle offense under coach Jeff Cariaso with a masterful 89-71 win over Globalport in the nightcap.

“What impressed me so far is the guys are willing to run the offense. It’s not easy to run, not easy to get disciplined when you feel nothing’s happening. But I’m happy with how the guys are playing it,” said Cariaso.

Turning a year older Monday, rookie Greg Slaughter showed a mature game, piling up 19 points, 17 rebounds and two blocks to lead the Kings to a triumphant start in the tourney after an early exit in the recent Commissioner’s Cup.

Though coming in just last Thursday, Sutton also provided the Express much help, topscoring with 25 points.

“He gave us tremendous energy. And with him around we established our inside presence, but he still needs to learn how PBA game is played,” said Pumaren.

Meanwhile, San Mig Coffee and Talk n Text return to action barely five days after their Commissioner’s Cup title showdown, taking on Barako Bull and Meralco, respectively, tonight also at the Big Dome.

The Mixers and the Energy Cola, eyeing a second straight win, slug it out at 5:45 p.m. The Tropang Texters and the Bolts, looking to bounce back from a losing debut, mix it up at 8 p.m.

“We move forward and don’t look back. As we say, yesterday ended last night. Now, we’re faced with a short conference where every game is crucial. We’ll be ready for it, no excuses,” said SMC coach Tim Cone.

“After only a five-day break, the goal is to get back on track as quickly as possible and continue winning games. That’s the best way to move on from our lost in the finals,” said TnT coach Norman Black.