Purefoods survives Talk n Text, takes 1-0 semis lead

Game Sunday (Smart Araneta Coliseum)

5 p.m. – Rain or Shine vs Meralco

MANILA, Philippines – Denzel Bowles delivered a personal PBA best of 49 points but floundered at the finish, and James Yap and Mark Barroca had to take over as Purefoods Star survived Talk n Text’s late charge for a 100-94 win in Game One of their PBA Commissioner’s Cup best-of-five semifinal series at the Smart Araneta Coliseum Wednesday night.

Bowles went scoreless in the last three minutes, and the Hotshots leaned on clutch shots by Yap and Barroca to complete the crucial win in the game where they nearly blew away a 21-point third-quarter lead.

Talk n Text fought to within one at 83-84 and was down by just four at 89-93 before Yap and Barroca seized the moment down the stretch and preserved Bowles’ most explosive PBA performance since piling up 39 points in Purefoods’ conquest of the same rival in the deciding Game Seven of the 2012 Commissioner’s Cup Finals.

“We played a flawless first half but we lost energy in the second half. I thought they totally dominated us in the second half,” said Purefoods coach Tim Cone after they survived a fourth-quarter breakdown.

“Denzel was awesome first half and then we stopped moving and started watching him make the shots. We have to be more disciplined than that. If we do, we’ll make it easier for Denzel,” Cone also said.

Cone also pointed to Marc Pingris’ ouster on an injury in the third period as a major factor in their near fold-up.

“Ping is so crucial in our matchups. Once we lost him, we scrambled. Hopefully, the four-day break would be enough time for him to get back in our lineup. If it’s just a first-degree sprain, he can come back. We’re keeping our fingers crossed,” said Cone.

With Pingris gone, Ivan Johnson went firing, unloading 28 points in the second half after struggling for just five in the first 24 minutes of play.

Jason Castro and Ranidel de Ocampo also provided firepower as the Texters rallied from 21 points down at 48-69 and got back into the fight in the fourth quarter.

The Hotshots pulled through as they proved steadier at endgame.

Yap scored on a layup then Barroca came up with a big steal and a magical shot to beat the 24-second shotclock buzzer as Purefoods regained a safe lead at 97-89 with time down to 47 seconds.

Yap finished with 18 points while Barroca chipped in four markers, five rebounds, two steals and one assist.

So strong was Bowles’ start that he outscored the entire Talk n Text team, 18-17, in the opening quarter.

He added 11 in the second period and matched his average of 31 points by drilling in Purefoods’ first basket in the second half.

With Bowles’ overpowering performance, the Hotshots led by 16, 31-15, right in the opening period then increased the bubble to 18, 41-23, before closing the half at 51-36.

The Texters couldn’t keep up with the Hotshots with Johnson limited to 2-of-8 field shooting in the first 24 minutes of play.

The Hotshots went on a five-minute scoreless spell at the start of the second period but the Texters failed to capitalize.

Purefoods got going again as Bowles sustained his fiery form in his return from a four-minute rest.