BANKING on a huge third-quarter flurry, Talk ‘N Text coasted to a bounce-back victory, trouncing Blackwater, 109-98, and keeping in step with the other top teams in the 2015 Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup Wednesday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
It was another day at work for Jayson Castro, the star spitfire, who unloaded a game-high 26 points, 15 of which came from five triples to go with five assists, as he continued to spearhead Talk ‘N Text’s attack.
The Texters tied sister team NLEX at fourth place on identical 4-2 marks, while Blackwater fell to 1-5 near the bottom after this second straight setback.
Following a tight first half where both squads went neck-to-neck, the Talk ‘N Text suddenly planted its feet hard on the accelerator to systematically rout the helpless Elite in a dominant second-half performance.
Talk ‘N Text coach Jong Uichico identified what the difference was for his Tropang Texters in the second half.
‘’I asked the players at halftime on why they can’t defend. Then, we played better defense in the second half,’’ said Uichico.
High-profile rookies Moala Tautuaa and Troy Rosario continued their growth by contributing to the win. Rosario came off the bench to fire 17 points and eight rebounds, while Tautuaa registered a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds as Castro got a lot of help from his pals.
The Tropang Texters unleashed a decisive 16-0 surge in the third to turn a five-point deficit into a commanding 72-61 spread after two free throws from Matt Ganuelasser at the 3:59 mark.
That allowed Talk ‘N Text to break the game wide open and breeze to a comfortable finish.
Talk ‘N Text carried a 78-68 cushion into the fourth period, which became target practice for the powerhouse Texters.
The lead apexed to as high as 19 points, 91-72, with 7:45 remaining after Castro’s triple.
Larry Fonacier also added 16 markers for Talk ‘N Text, also off the bench.
Carlo Lastimosa and JP Erram each had a team-high 19 points to lead Blackwater.
The scores:
TALK N’ TEXT 109—Castro 26, Rosario 17, Fonacier 16, Tautuaa 16, Crey 11, Rosser 8, Williams 6, Miranda 3, Aban 2, Reyes J. 2, Seigle 2, Reyes R. 0.
BLACKWATER 98—Erram 18, Lastimosa 18, Dela Cruz 13, Cortez 11, Reyes 9, Ballesteros 8, Cervantes 8, Sena 7, Gamalinda 6, Canada 0, Vosotros 0.
Quarters: 24-24, 26-27, 78-68, 109-98
Games Friday
(Smart Araneta Coliseum)
4:15 p.m. – Alaska vs. NLEX
7 p.m. – Rain or Shine vs. Barako