Aces upend Barakos in fight-marred tiff

Artemus McClary got back at Quemont Greer in their match-up and Alaska Milk exacted sweet revenge versus Red Bull Barako, 81-64, in their fight-marred rematch in the San Mig Coffee PBA Fiesta Cup classification round at the Astrodome last night.

Outplayed by Greer in their previous game, McClary returned the favor, dishing out a near triple-double performance with 31 points, 19 rebounds and nine assists as the Aces avenged a heart-breaking 75-76 loss to the Barakos last Oct. 9.

Alaska stretched its streak to four games while stopping Red Bull’s own run at three. The Aces, thus, improved their record to 5-2 as they handed the Barakos a third defeat against four wins.

Don Allado was among the Aces who came up with a splendid game only to ruin his night by triggering a melee with 2:15 left to play.

Losing his cool after hitting the floor on what looked like an ordinary foul by Mick Pennisi, Allado attacked the 6-foot-8 Fil-foreign player and hit Enrico Villanueva on the face when the former Ateneo stalwart tried to stop him.

Allado hit the floor when he was attacked by Celino Cruz.

After order was restored, Allado, Pennisi and Cruz were slapped with flagrant fouls with Allado and Cruz ejected from the game.

"When you play Red Bull, it’s always a battle. They battle you and it’s tough physically. It’s a matter of keeping your poise and focus on the game. Don lost it for a minute," said Alaska coach Tim Cone.

"But sometimes, you can’t avoid it. It’s so early in the tournament but there’s a lot at stake in this game. Both teams wanted to make a statement," Cone added.

The Aces got off to a listless start but seized the initiative when the Barakos blew cold in the final half.

The Barakos squandered early double-digit spreads as they practically threw bricks in the last two quarters of play. The team ended up with a woeful 27.5 percent field-goal shooting — the worst in franchise history.

Even Greer, the league-leading scorer, struggled on the floor, going 0-of-6 from the three-point zone and 6-of-19 from the two-point area.

Averaging 30.5 points a game, Greer scored only 17 this time.

Curiously, the Red Bull import made 23 points, including a key dunk in the closing seconds and paved the way for their close win in their previous game.

Sean Lampley made a basket just before the final buzzer sounded and Barangay Ginebra overcame a 10-point deficit in the last four minutes of play, scoring a nail-biting 74-72 win over San Miguel Beer in the night cap.