MANILA, Philippines - Powerade clobbered winless Shopinas.com, 102-84, to boost its playoff bid while easing out the Clickers in the 2011-12 PBA Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum last night.
Playing with a sense of urgency, the Tigers checked a four-game slide and gained more breathing space with a full-game edge over the rallying Alaska Milk Aces in their spirited battle for the last quarterfinal berth.
Powerade coach Bo Perasol said they’re hoping they can win two more of their last three games to gain an outright playoff shot at the last quarters seat.
“We’ll go through the eye of the needle versus Talk n Text, Barako Bull and Meralco. Hopefully, we improve our confidence from this game and, hopefully, we can win close games,” said Perasol.
Shopinas.com moved out of contention for the quarterfinals with a 12th straight loss, leaving the Tigers (4-7) and the Aces (3-8) in a fight for eighth place.
In bowing out, the Clickers tied the league’s longest skid in a conference (13 straight losses) suffered by Great Taste in the 1982 Reinforced Conference and by Countryfair in the 1984 second conference.
Meanwhile, Petron Blaze and Meralco resume their bids for the top seeding in the quarters as they clash in a Phoenix Fuel-sponsored road game in Naga City today.
The Boosters and the Bolts are in the top four, half-game apart with the former at 7-3 and the latter at 7-4. The top two in the elims will enjoy a twice-to-beat edge versus the No. 7 and No. 8 teams in the quarters.
Powerade also thumped Shopinas, 98-87, last Oct. 5.
Rookie forward Marcio Lassiter helped anchor the Tigers’ third-quarter breakaway, piling up a game-high 21 points that went with eight assists and seven rebounds before leaving the game after sustaining a cut below his right eye with 3:07 left to play.
Doug Kramer churned out a double-double game with 17 points and 10 rebounds while Gary David contributed 16 points as the Tigers came out of the rut heading into the homestretch of the elims.
The Powerade back-up crew did their job in the second quarter, working on an attack that opened a 50-43 lead for the Tigers at the half.
B-Meg blew away an early 21-point lead but beat Rain or Shine in a battle down the stretch, squeezing out a 102-100 win in the nightcap.
PJ Simon banged away a three-pointer inside the final minute for the deciding basket as the Llamados stretched their streak to five games and caught up with the Elasto Painters and the Meralco Bolts at third on their identical 7-4 cards. - By Nelson Beltran
