Porter, Kings rebound to force Game 7

Chris Porter crashed the boards all night and broke the heart of Red Bull as he powered Barangay Ginebra to a crucial 85-77 win that forced a deciding Game Seven in their San Mig Coffee PBA Fiesta Cup Final Four showdown at the Astrodome yesterday.

Porter snared a conference-high 30 rebounds and fired 24 points, including big ones off the offensive board, as the Kings made it two in a row over the Bulls, thus, forging a 3-3 standoff in their best-of-seven series.

The two teams clash in a knockout game for a seat in the finals tomorrow at the Araneta Coliseum.

Showing his worth as an NBA veteran, Porter made seven points and 14 rebounds in the fourth quarter, outrebounding the entire Red Bull team by two.

Determined to prove that their Game Five win over a James Penny-less Red Bull side was no fluke, Porter came out smoking and outplayed his former Oklahoma Storm teammate in the CBA. Penny finished with only 13 points and the same number of rebounds.

Completing a double-double game even before the first half ended, Porter sustained his fiery form in the final half, breaking the previous high of 26 rebounds with two minutes left to play on an offensive carom against Enrico Villanueva.

He then went for a simple putback to cap his 24-point explosion that gave the Kings a commanding 81-73 advantage.

The Kings easily completed the job as the Bulls failed to recover from a scoring drought that started after Celino Cruz canned two charities giving them a 73-70 lead with seven minutes left to play.

After that, the Bulls only scored again when the Kings were safely away at 82-73 with 28.9 ticks left.

"This is nothing. What I’ve said before they need to win and we need a win. We’re in the same boat right now. Same thing on Sunday," said Ginebra coach Siot Tanquingcen.

"Key in playoff time is defense. Defense came into effect and that’s what we’ve been trying … making stops and making the shots," Tanquingcen added.

Red Bull suffered two dry spells in the contest with the first in the second quarter, allowing Ginebra to post a 44-35 margin at the half. The Bulls made only six points in the quarter.

The Kings came through with a big 18-2 run through the first nine minutes of the second quarter to surge ahead from a 22-27 deficit after the first period.