Alaska forces rubber

Alaska Milk refused to just roll over and die last night, snapping out of a three-game rut to force a winner-take-all match with Purefoods in their Samsung PBA Governors Cup best-of-seven title showdown at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Aces threw a defensive net on Derrick Brown, sent Kelvin Price into early foul trouble and went on to dominate the badly-stunned Hotdogs in hacking out an 85-78 win that sent the series to a deciding Game Seven Sunday.

Don Allado and Rodney Santos emerged as Alaska’s unlikely heroes in the contest, with the former playing superbly against Price despite an ankle injury and the latter rising up from a stupor and taking the sting out of Brown’s game.

With the two Purefoods imports checked, the Aces imposed their will on the Hotdogs, thus getting back into business and in the hunt for a first title since the 2000 All-Filipino.

"I didn’t think we gonna give it that easy," said Alaska coach Tim Cone as they foiled Purefoods’ first attempt at nailing down the coveted crown.

"Our young guys stepped up. Don Allado, Rodney Santos and John Arigo played great and Ron Riley and James Head played in the framework of our game," Cone added.

The five did play well, getting Alaska off to a strong start and keeping the team on a roll till the end.

Practically playing a step ahead of the Hotdogs throughout, the Aces led from start to finish and even enjoyed a 20-point spread at one point at 67-47 early in the fourth quarter.

"I think Purefoods spent a lot of energy in winning the last three games. They came out without energy tonight," said Cone.

The Alaska mentor said the team that will come out strong and sustain good energy would win the deciding game.

For the record, Sunday’s game will be the 11th Game Seven that will be played in the league. Alaska will be in its sixth Game Seven, looking for a fourth straight win while Purefoods in its fourth, looking for its first ever win.

Head came up with a solid double-double game with 23 points and 14 rebounds while Arigo, Riley and Santos all added 14 points or more and Allado six points, three rebounds and the same number of assists.

Santos proved to be Alaska’s surprise package, neutralizing Brown with leech-like guarding and also making an impact offensively with 14 points. Curiously, the former San Sebastian Stag in the NCAA collected only 13 points in the first five games of the series.

Brown actually finished with a game-high27points but he made the bulk of it with the Aces already in full control in the final half.

The Hotdogs found a big vacuum in their game after Price picked a fourth foul barely a minute into the third quarter.

With Price on the bench, the Aces lorded it over the boards and made big runs to take a 61-45 at the end of the third quarter.