Purefoods considers itself doubly lucky for having two able leaders in Kerby Raymundo and James Yap, the KFC/Accel- PBA Press Corps’ Co-Players of the Week for the period Oct. 27 to Nov. 2.
The rest of the Giants rode on the able shoulders of the dynamic duo in fashioning a thrilling 108-105 overtime win over the Air21 Express in the Philippine Cup’s Halloween presentation last Friday.
The victory, coming on the heels of a more cruising 92-81 triumph over Ginebra the Sunday before, marked the first time hobbled Purefoods fashioned back-to-back wins in the conference, jacking their win-loss record to 3-4 and out of the cellar.
Giants coach Ryan Gregorio knows exactly whom to give the bulk of the credit.
“They were remarkable in our last two wins, especially in our game against Air21,” said Gregorio of Raymundo, who scored a career high 37 points, and Yap, who had 31, against the Express.
“We simply rode on their backs with their combined output of 68 points,” Gregorio added. “They showed great leadership when we were on the verge of losing.”
The Purefoods stars became the first teammates to put together 30-point performances in a single game since San Miguel’s Danny Seigle and Dondon Hontiveros made the feat in a 119-115 win over Red Bull in Game Seven of the 2006-07 Philippine Cup semifinals.