Pals edge closer to PBA final

Talk n Text rode out the trauma of a shock loss in their last outing as it hacked out an emphatic 91-78 victory over Shell to move a win shy of the Gran Matador PBA Fiesta Cup Finals at the Astrodome last night.

The Phone Pals got back at the Turbochargers with a good defensive job of their own, reasserting their mastery of the Shell squad which they have beaten for the eighth time in their last nine games now.

Limiting the Turbochargers below 80 points as in Game One Sunday, the Phone Pals avenged their 92-94 defeat in Game Two, gaining the pivotal two-game-to-one lead in the best-of-five semifinals series.

"We saw the real Shell team the last time, and we told ourselves we have to be really prepared all the time against them," said Talk n Text coach Joel Banal.

"To me, Shell’s the most athletic team in the league right now. And they have nothing to lose here. They’re playing with no pressure. And it’s not easy to play a team like that," Banal added of the Shell team which has been on a remarkable showing in the playoffs after finishing ninth in the double-round classification phase.

Determined to avoid falling 1-2 behind in the series, the Phone Pals worked hard on both ends of the court, taking control the entire last three quarters of play.

Jerald Honeycutt had a double-double game with 21 points and 15 rebounds while Mark Telan, Jimmy Alapag and Victor Pablo all added 11 points or more for the Phone Pals who built a 45-35 lead at the half and kept the Turbochargers at bay the rest of the way.

Chris Calaguio erupted for a personal conference high 27 points, including six treys, but didn’t get the needed support from his teammates.

The Phone Pals once again were able to neutralize Ajani Williams, limiting him to only 11 points after exploding for 25 the last time. Banal, however, said that’s a major concern for his team in Game Four.

"He’s a competitor, you neutralize him now and he’ll surely cone out strong the next time," said Banal.

With Williams bleeding for his points, Calaguio took upon himself to seize the cudgels for his team, scoring 10 each in the last two quarters.

Calaguio rattled in eight straight points in a 17-6 exchange that had Shell threatening at 73-79 with time down to 5:05.

But the Phone Pals sensed the imminent danger and regrouped, going to Pablo and Telan for the clutch points to eventually finish off the Turbochargers at 84-73 with a little over a minute left to play.