‘Bandana Boys’ carry load for Gin Kings

Mark Caguioa and Jay Jay Helterbrand went on a scoring spree as Barangay Ginebra drove past Air21, 116-105, yesterday to seize the lead in the Talk N’ Text PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.

Caguioa and Helterbrand, known in the PBA as the "Bandana Boys," accounted for more than half of the Kings’ total output and powered the league’s most popular team to a fourth straight victory and 10th in 14 games overall.

Caguioa fired a conference-high 35 points while Helterbrand booked his own high of 25 points on top of 11 assists and four steals as they took the sting out of the Express, who have the league-best average of 103.2 points per game.

"They’re just great," said Ginebra coach Jong Uichico of his high-scoring tandem.

Gary David came off the bench to score 28 points, including 11 in the fourth quarter for Air 21. But he failed to keep up for the Express when Caguioa and Helterbrand stepped on the gas in the stretch and deal the Express their eighth loss against six wins.

"They were playing their game in the first half," said Uichico. "But my players did a good job in putting a stop to their offense with an aggressive defense."

Niño Canaleta scattered 15 points early on as the Express seized a 39-26 lead in the second quarter. But the Kings, egged on by the crowd, clawed back to cut their deficit to just six points, 48-54, at the break.

An 11-2 blast had Air21 erecting a 65-50 advantage, its biggest of the game. Again, Ginebra roared back to tie the count at 81-all with a quarter to go.

After a seesaw battle in the first five minutes of the final canto, Caguioa and Helterbrand just took over to lead the crowd favorites to victory.