Realtors ground streaking Texters

Bitoy Omolon poured in all of his 24 points in the final half and Kelly Williams added 21 as Sta. Lucia Realty repulsed Talk n Text, 117-96, last night in the KFC PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.

Omolon and Williams flashed the form that netted them slots in the league’s Mythical Selection last season as the reigning champions made key adjustments in the second half to bounce back from their 86-89 loss to the Barangay Ginebra Kings Wednesday.

Joseph Yeo, Norman Gonzales, Ryan Reyes and Denok Miranda also made significant contributions as the Realtors stopped the Talk n Text charge, dealing the Tropang Texters their first defeat after back-to-back wins over the Coca-Cola Tigers and the Air21 Express.

“Basically, we made the right adjustments after a struggle in the first half. We made some adjustments on spacing, and Kelly (Williams) responded well on our call on him not to rush his shots,” said Sta. Lucia coach Boyet Fernandez.

“It’s nice to get this win against Talk n Text which is a strong team. Actually, almost all the teams have upgraded their lineups, and we have to work hard every practice and each game to cope up with the competition,” Fernandez said.

The Realtors came out flat in the tourney, suffering a sorry loss to a Ginebra team minus injured key players Mark Caguioa, Junthy Valenzuela, Billy Mamaril and Rafi Reavis.

They also had a sluggish start against the Tropang Texters but slowly picked up their game in the final half with Williams and Omolon taking charge.

Williams, the 2007-08 MVP winner, scattered 12 points in the third quarter, propelling the Realtors to a 75-67 lead from 36-37 down at the turn.

Talk n Text rookie Jarred Dillinger opened the final quarter with a booming trey before Williams, Gonzales and Yeo teamed up in a 15-8 run to stretch the Sta. Lucia lead to 90-78 with 7:17 left to play.

Omolon took over from there.

The PCU product, gaining a first-ever inclusion in the Mythical Selection last year, tossed in 15 points to give the Realtors leads of over 20 points in the closing minutes.

Junjun Cabatu dished out his best game as a pro, scoring a game-high 23 points as Barangay Ginebra continued to buck injuries to key players, topping Air21, 101-92, to tie Rain or Shine and Alaska Milk in the lead on their identical 2-0 win-loss cards.

“I don’t know how we did it. We’re just finding ways to win,” said coach Jong Uichico whose lineup was further decimated by the ouster of Eric Menk and Alex Crisano.