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The entire Barangay need not be alarmed for they haven’t seen the last of Jayjay Helterbrand in a Ginebra uniform.

The former PBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) has decided to stay on and play for the Kings after speculations came out that he’s planning to retire after his one-conference contract wit the league’s crowd darlings expired when the Kings were eliminated in the Philippine Cup playoffs.

“I decided to stay (in the PBA) and keep playing,” said the 35-year-old Helterbrand, who was bothered by an assortment of injuries that forced him to sign a one-conference contract with the Kings to see if his body can still respond to the rigors of having to play all year-round.

At the same time, the 2008-09 season MVP admitted he wants to make up for all the lost time with his two US-based daughters, aged 16 and 11.

“I thought that at my age now, maybe it’s time for me to make a sacrifice for them,” added the shooting guard out of Kentucky State-Lexington.

Then came the major signs.

Although he spent part of the All-Filipino conference on the injured list, Helterbrand admitted he feels healthy right now and believed he can still play some minutes for the Kings in the coming Commissioner’s Cup.

One of his daughters even told him that she’s willing to relocate and continue with her studies in the country.

“That’s why I’m staying with Ginebra,” said Helterbrand, the other half of the league’s so-called ‘Fast and Furious’ tandem he forms with Mark Caguioa.

No contract has yet been offered by the Ginebra management, although Helterbrand said he’ll sit down and talk with team officials shortly after the long holiday season.

And to those interested to make him an offer, the Ginebra guard said his heart belongs to just one team.

“As long as I’m in the PBA, I’m staying with Ginebra. Can’t imagine myself in another team,” he said. — JVP, GMA News

ANTIPOLO CITY. – The potential in Rain or Shine is now right on track to becoming a reality.

The Elasto Painters used some of their good start to finish off Barangay Ginebra and fashion a coasting 106-91 victory Wednesday for a sweep of their PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinals series at the Ynares Center here.

Jeff Chan scored a game-high 22 points to lead a balanced attack by Rain or Shine as it followed up its 112-105 overtime victory in the best-of-three duel’s opener last Friday to arrange a semifinal meeting with early qualifier Powerade.

Not bad at all for a team that has gone to the semis only twice before since joining the league in 2006 and did not raise much expectations after winding up the eliminations at No. 5 for the showdown with Barangay Ginebra, winner of its last five elims games for a No. 4 ranking.

“It was really a big challenge for us, taking on Ginebra in the quarters,” said head coach Yeng Guiao. “We’re taking it as a very good sign for a young team such as ours to play under pressure. (Our players) have toughened up. I just hope we can bring it to the next round.”

Despite getting buried under early by Rain or Shine’s 41-point explosion right in the opening quarter and falling behind by 24 points twice Barangay Ginebra kept its poise and even trimmed the deficit to just 13 in the third period and 14 in the fourth.

The Elasto Painters managed to weather the storm each time, however, and went into the final two minutes with a 104-81 spread by also getting it done on the other end of the court.

“We kept our game plan simple,” related Guiao. “Our goal really was just to double team their guards, contain their guards and see what happens. Our offense just takes care of itself.”

Mike Cortez finished with a team-high 17 points, with 12 coming in the fourth when all was lost. Barangay Ginebra’s other backcourt men — Mark Caguioa, Rob Labagala, Jayjay Helterbrand and Ronald Tubid — combined for 25 points but all were hardly factors.

As a team, Rain or Shine finished making 35 of 82 shots to Ginebra’s 31-for-80. But the Elasto Painters went 22-for-42 in the first half and made six of 10 three-point attempts in the opening quarter alone to get the momentum it hardly relinquished.

“I think the key today was we took away their initiative from the very start,” noted Guiao. “We got a really good start and that was the key in this game. We were having a good shooting night tonight so I just asked the boys to shoot whenever they feel it’s a good shot. Fortunately, our shots were going in.”

After going scoreless in the first game, Ronjay Buenafe atoned with 13 points while Ronnie Matias, Beau Belga and Ryan Arana had at least 11 each to make up for Paul Lee’s eight markers.

Lee made 19 points in the first game but only had a triple to show after the first three quarters. He still finished the game, however and his five-point cluster capped Rain or Shine’s 9-0 surge from a 95-81 count.

Rain or Shine scored 43 fourth-quarter points to complete its comeback from a 17-point deficit last Friday and the Elasto Painters merely seemed to pick up from where they left off, scattering 41 in the opening period to race to a 17-point lead.

Guiao’s charges actually led by as much as 33-15 following Gabe Norwood’s left corner triple.

Barangay Ginebra did manage a charge of its own, pouncing on Rain or Shine’s 1-for-10 shooting and rallying behind Billy Mamaril and Caguioa for an 11-2 blast that whittled the deficit to 50-63, 7:23 left in the third quarter.

Whatever chance the Kings may have had of turning the game’s complexion around vanished, however, when Mamaril missed a jumper and Belga blocked Tubid in their next two possessions.

That gave Rain or Shine the opening to steadily pull away anew, with Belga, Buenafe, Chan and Arana showing the way to a 78-61 lead going into the last 12 minutes of play.

The hot shooting started to taper off in the second quarter, but Rain or Shine continued to get the job done on the other end as it stretched the cushion to a high of 24 points twice before settling for a 58-37 halftime count.

Meanwhile, PBA commissioner Chito Salud bared the league will be donating a total P1.1 million for those ravaged by Typhoon Sendong in the South.

Salud said the PBA board has approved the giving of P1 million to the Philippine National Red Cross and P100,000 to Gawad Kalinga for said agencies to handle the distribution of the funds to the victims. (NC)

The scores:

RAIN OR SHINE 106 – Chan 22, Buenafe 13, Matias 12, Belga 12, Arana 11, Norwood 9, Quinahan 9, Lee 8, Rodriguez 6, Cruz 4, Tang 0.

BARANGAY GINEBRA 91 – Cortez 17, Canaleta 13, Intal 12, Caguioa 11, Mamaril 10, Labagala 8, Villanueva 8, W. Wilson 6, Helterbrand 6, Tubid 0.

Quarterscores: 41-24, 58-37, 78-61, 106-91

source: www.pba.ph

Rain or Shine pulled off an epic feat Friday night that coach Yeng Guiao termed “coming back from jaws of hell.”

The Elasto Painters showed their own never-say-die spirit against the never-say-die Ginebra team, coming from behind to pull off a 112-105 win in overtime in the opener of their PBA Philippine Cup best-of-three quarterfinals showdown at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

“We’d thought it’s a lost ball game,” said RoS coach Yeng Guiao moments after the stirring victory that sent them to the threshold of the Final Four.

The Elasto Painters, in pursuit of a breakthrough championship, advance to the semis with a win Wednesday or Friday.

JR Quinahan and Paul Lee combined for 29 points in the payoff period fuelling the Rain or Shine charge from 17 points down at 62-79.

Vicious were the Elasto Painters in their fourth-quarter siege that they even got the chance to win the game right on regulation as they pulled ahead at 99-97 with 8.7 ticks left.

The Kings forged the extension play as Willy Wilson came through with a buzzer-beating reversed layup.

The Elasto Painters, however, roared on in OT and pulled through on clutch plays by Lee, Beau Belga, Gabe Norwood and Jeff Chan.

“They played us very physical in the first half. At naging factor siguro dahil mukhang napagod sila,” said Guiao.

The Elasto Painters pushed the ball hard in the final canto, outscoring the Kings, 43-30. Rain or Shine’s fourth-quarter output was the most by any team in a quarter this conference.

“We’re getting good looks in the first half. Kaya lang talagang ayaw pumasok. I told the boys to keep on taking shots. I don’t care about the percentage; just take the shots. That’s the way to get confidence,” said Guiao.

Quinahan produced team-highs of 21 points and 11 rebounds before fouling out with 1:53 left in regulation.

Lee struggled most of the way but hit his strides when it mattered the most. He put in 19 points, including 12 free throws.

“Wala akong ibang sinabi sa kanya (Lee) kung hindi laruin nya ang laro nya. He’s a gifted player, he’s talented, he knows what to do,” said Guiao.

Mark Caguioa and Nino Canaleta fueled Ginebra’s second-quarter siege, combining for 14 points and six rebounds as the Kings opened a 44-33 lead at the half.

Enrico Villanueva stood at the forefront of the Kings’ bid early on, firing away eight points as they fought the Elasto Painters to a 20-all deadlock in the opening period.

The Kings seized control in the second period with a 57.9-percent shooting as against the Elasto Painters’ 21.1-percent clip.

Caguioa and Villanueva had made 12 points apiece at the turn while no one among the Rain or Shine players had put in more than six.

Lee had three points all from the stripe. He went 0-of-4 from the field. (SB)

The scores:

RAIN OR SHINE 112 – Quinahan 21, Lee 19, Chan 14, Arana 12, Rodriguez 11, Belga 9, Norwood 7, Tang 7, Cruz 5, Matias 4, Ibanes 3, Buenafe 0.

GINEBRA 105 – Caguioa 25, Intal 16, Canaleta 16, Villanueva 16, Cortez 15, Wilson W. 9, Labagala 4, Mamaril4, Maliksi 0, Wilson J. 0.

Quarters: 20-20, 33-44, 56-69, 99-99, 112-105

source: www.pba.ph

Dead even in the elimination round, Barangay Ginebra and Rain or Shine are pitted in what’s easily the most exciting matchup in the PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinals.

Keen observers see it a toss-up.

The protagonists, meanwhile, can only express guarded optimism at best.

“It’s going to be tough. We need to stay focused mentally, concentrate on defense and share the ball on offense,” said Ginebra coach Siot Tanquingcen.

“They are at their peak and we hope we can slow them down a little bit,” said Rain or Shine bench chieftain Yeng Guiao.

The Kings and the Elasto Painters start their best-of-three quarters showdown at 7:30 p.m. Friday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

The Kings are riding the momentum of a five-game streak but the Elasto Painters themselves are on a high, having finished their elims stint on a winning note.

They wound up with identical 9-6 win-loss marks in the elims although the Elasto Painters emerged victorious in their fierce battle at the start of the season.

Nonetheless, Guiao insists they’re the underdogs. It doesn’t mean, though, that Guiao is wary of the match-up.

“We’re excited to play Ginebra. It’s always a treat to play Ginebra in the playoffs because we like the attention and we like our role as underdogs,” said Guiao.

Tanquingcen won’t quarrel with Guiao, just promising that his chargers will come out ready for a battle.

“Rain or Shine will be tough. They beat us in the opening game by one. They’re a pretty good team and we’ve got to be ready,” said Tanquingcen.

Ginebra has beefed up its frontcourt in activating Rico Maierhofer for the playoffs.

In the end, the Ginebra-RoS duel could well be decided by the backcourt matchups, though.

Mark Caguioa and Mike Cortez spearhead the Kings’ bid against Rain or Shine led by prized rookie guard Paul Lee.

Lee had a sterling pro debut, leading Rain or Shine to a 94-93 squeaker over Ginebra in the season opener. (SB)

Gaining the needed help from Barangay Ginebra, B-Meg emerged the top notcher at the close of the PBA Philippine Cup elimination phase at the Smart Araneta Coliseum Sunday.

The Ginebra Kings downed the Talk n Text Tropang Texters, 96-82, and made the B-Meg Llamados the top seed in the playoffs beginning Wednesday also at the Big Dome.

B-Meg and Talk n Text actually finished with identical 10-4 win-loss slates but the former clinched elims top honors with a superior quotient.

With Rain or Shine topping Alaska Aces 91-85, earlier in the day, the Elasto Painters, the Kings and the Petron Blaze Boosters wound up tied at 9-5.

Petron emerged the playoffs third seed, Ginebra fourth, and Rain or Shine fifth after the application of the quotient tiebreak system.

Top seed B-Meg and second-ranked Talk n Text enjoy twice-to-beat advantage in their respective quarters match-ups with Powerade and Barako Bull.

Petron and Ginebra, meanwhile, tangle with Meralco and Rain or Shine, respectively, in separate best-of-three showdowns.

Ginebra outfought Talk n Text in the payoff period as the Kings sustained their hot romp, clinching a fifth straight win to close their elims stint.

Mark Caguioa, Mike Cortez, JC Intal, Enrico Villanueva and Willy Wilson did the job, fueling the Kings’ blazing finish.

All these five players piled up at least 14 points each. They combined for all but two of Ginebra’s 32-point output in the final canto.

The Kings were down by two at 67-69 before Intal, Wilson, Cortez, Caguioa and Villanueva teamed up in an furious attack that opened a 90-77 bulge for Ginebra entering the last three minutes of the game.

The Kings kept going as did the Elasto Painters going into the playoffs.

“Rain or Shine will be tough. They beat us in the opening game by one. They’re a pretty good team and we’ve got to be ready,” said Ginebra coach SiotTanquingcen.

“The next step is to win the quarters and we’re hopeful we can do that,” said assistant coach Caloy Garcia who called the shots for the Elasto Painters in the absence of coach Yeng Guiao.

“I think we can match up better with Ginebra. They have big men who are not really dominant except Eric Menk,” said Garcia on their quarters match-up with the Kings.

“Petron would have been tougher. They’re coming off a championship. They have a high morale,” Garcia added.

Rain or Shine lost its two recent playoffs encounters with Ginebra but Garcia insisted they’re a better team now. (SB) | source: www.pba.ph

GINEBRA 96 – Caguioa 18, Cortez 17, Intal 15, Villanueva 15, Wilson W. 14, Mamaril 8, Labagala 4,Canaleta 3, Tubid 2, Maliksi 0, Cervantes 0, Wilson J. 0.

TALK N’ TEXT 82 – Castro 14, Dillinger 12, Williams 12, Carey 12, Fonacier 10, Aguilar 7, Reyes 5, Raymundo 4, Gamalinda 4, Alvarez 2, Weinstein 0, De Ocampo 0.

Quarters: 23-20, 41-45, 64-65, 96-82

Quarterfinals Matchups:
B-MEG*(1) vs. Powerade(8)
TNT*(2) vs. Barako(7)
Petron*(3) vs. Meralco(6)
Ginebra*(4) vs. ROS(5)
* twice to beat

PBA Game Schedules
Dec14 – TNT v Barako (5:15pm)
Dec14 – BMEG v Powerade (7:30pm)
Dec16 – Petron v Meralco (5:15pm)
Dec16 – Ginebra v ROS (7:30pm)
[PBA Free Live Stream]

Rain or Shine has a set meeting with Barangay Ginebra and now has ample reason to look forward to that.

The Elasto Painters put their acts together in the second half to beat the Alaska Aces, 91-85, Sunday to formally wind up their PBA Philippine Cup elimination round assignments at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Beau Belga and Ronjay Buenafe each scored 14 points to lead the balanced Rain or Shine attack that took full form only in the latter stages of the second half, enough to take the wind out of Alaska’s sails.

The victory formally gave the Elasto Painters a 9-5 win-loss slate at the end of the eliminations as they primed up for the best-of-three duel with former series tormentor Ginebra in the quarterfinals starting Friday.

The 8-5 Kings are meeting the Talk ‘N Text Tropang Texters later Sunday. No matter the outcome of that game, Rain or Shine is set to meet the same team that has beaten them twice before in a series, the most recent in last season’s Commissioner’s Cup quarterfinals, also a race-to-two that went the full distance.

Assistant coach Carlos Garcia stood in for head tactician Yeng Guiao, who was attending a formal function in Pampanga where he is vice-governor.

Garcia said Guiao’s gameplan was followed to the letter for the most part and they can now look forward to the upcoming meeting with Ginebra.

“I think against Ginebra we can match up better,” said Garcia. “Hopefully, coach Yeng can beat Ginebra in a series.”

Cyrus Baguio scored a game-high 21 points to lead Alaska, which put up a decent fight despite the match being a no-bearing one for the team long eliminated from the race to the quarterfinals.

The Aces formally wound up with a 3-11 slate, marking only the third time in 32 conferences they failed to advance past the elims. The last time was in the 2009 Fiesta Conference.

Rain or Shine prized rookie Paul Lee also sat out the game to fully heal a bruised left shin. His absence was hardly felt as Larry Rodriguez, Jervy Cruz and Ronnie Matias each added at least 10 points to Rain or Shine’s cause.

Belga added eight rebounds while Rodriguez chipped in 12 points, seven boards and four dimes.

However, it was the likes of Cruz, Matias and even seldom-used Jonathan Uyloan who lent the biggest hands in the Elasto Painters’ protracted surge in a game that had 14 deadlocks and 15 lead changes.

“We wanted to give them different looks,” narrated Garcia. “We wanted to be aggressive so that we could bring that attitude in the next game, which right now is against Ginebra.”

Uyloan buried two triples and Cruz also had six points during a 14-5 run from the last tie at 66. Matias’ three-point play made it an 85-75 count which proved to be unassailable in the last 4:56.

The likes of Sonny Thoss, Ervin Sotto and Sam Eman were mainly responsible why Alaska was in the thick of things in the early goings and even forged the game’s ninth deadlock at 42 at the turn.

The three frontliners combined for 23 points and threw their weight inside in giving the Aces a 32-24 advantage off the boards in the first 24 minutes of play.

Buenafe fully hit his stride in the third period by going 3-for-4 from beyond the arc before Belga and Cruz led the team into a 70-66 lead going into the last 12 minutes of play.

RAIN OR SHINE 91 – Belga 14, Buenafe 14, Rodriguez 12, Cruz 10, Matias 10, Chan 8, Uyloan 6, Arana 6, Norwood 4, Quianahan 4, Tang 3, Jaime 0.

ALASKA 85 – Baguio 21, Tenorio 12, Thoss 12, Reyes 11, Eman 9, Custodio 8, Sotto 8, Salamat 2, Baracael 2, Pasculado 0.

Quarterscores: 19-20, 42-42, 70-66, 91-85

Quarterfinals Matchups:

B-MEG*(1) vs. Powerade(8)
TNT*(2) vs. Barako(7)
Petron*(3) vs. Meralco(6)
Ginebra*(4) vs. ROS(5)
* twice to beat

PBA Game Schedules
Dec14 – TNT v Barako (5:15pm)
Dec14 – BMEG v Powerade (7:30pm)
Dec16 – Petron v Meralco (5:15pm)
Dec16 – Ginebra v ROS (7:30pm)

source: gmanetwork.com

Barangay Ginebra overcame stubborn Barako Bull Thursday night, 88-83, to avoid being relegated in the bottom half of the PBA Philippine Cup playoffs.

Mike Cortez, Ronald Tubid and Mark Caguioa joined hands in the fourth period as the Kings recovered just in time to secure their fourth straight win. The trio scored 10 straight unanswered to turn a 69-67 deficit to a 77-69 lead midway in the quarter.

Ginebra, which led by 47-27 just before halftime, never looked back from there as it clinched eighth overall win in 13 outings.

The Kings aim for a better quarterfinals finish when they close their elimination round campaign against defending champion Talk `N Text.

“Well, we just have to play hard and see where we’re going to fall,” said coach Siot Tanquingcen after the match. “At least we avoided having to beat twice either the numbers one or two teams (in the playoffs).”

That distinction now belongs to Barako Bull, which was relegated to seventh spot in the quarterfinals and needing to win back-to-back against the No. 2 team to move into the semis.

The Energy suffered their third straight loss for a 6-8 (win-loss) slate.

To its credit, Barako Bull made a huge third-quarter run against the league’s crowd darlings where they overhauled a 20-point deficit to tie the game at 67-all entering the final 12 minutes of play.

Veteran Don Allado scored all of his nine points in the third, including the game-tying basket.

The Energy even grabbed a slim 69-67 advantage at the start of the fourth, before Tubid’s two free throws—off an Allado foul— sparked Ginebra’s telling run.

“They got back on us and made a game of it,” said Cortez, whose 17 points led all Barangay Ginebra scorers. “But we stayed focus and didn’t lose our composure.”

Caguioa added 16 for the Kings and Rob Labagala finished with a career-high 14 markers.

Two-time league Most Valuable Player (MVP) Willie Miller’s 18 points paced Barako. — JVP, GMA News

Scores:

Ginebra 88—Cortez 17, Caguioa 16, Labagala 14, Canaleta 13, Wilson 8, Villanueva 7, Tubid 6, Intal 4, Menk 3, Maliksi 0, Mamaril 0.

Barako Bull 83—Miller 18, Najorda 14, Ababou 12, Arboleda 11, Allado 9, Seigle 8, Pena 6, Artadi 3, Pennisi 2, Salvador 0, Salvacion 0.

Quarter scores: 20-15, 47-32, 67-67, 88-83.

source: www.pba.ph

Barangay Ginebra seeks to secure spot in the Top Six in taking on pursuer Barako Bull in the penultimate play date of the PBA Philippine Cup elimination round at the Smart Araneta Coliseum Thursday.

Now a long shot for a twice-to-beat quarterfinals advantage, Ginebra will be satisfied to make the best-of-three quarterfinals. The Kings take their first of two shots at it in tackling the Energy at 7:30 p.m.

“We have to come into the game with a playoff mentality,” said Ginebra coach Siot Tanquingcen, anticipating a tough battle with Barako.

The Energy themselves are well motivated, likewise driven by that desire to avoid being matched up with a team enjoying twice-to-beat edge in the quarters.

“Mabigat talaga ‘yon,” said Tanquingcen.

Ginebra automatically eases Barako out of the race for the top six with a win in their game.

The Kings, meanwhile, bungle their bid if they drop their last two games versus the Energy Thursday and against the Tropang Texters Sunday.

“We had a good weekend but the mission is not yet over. We still have to keep on fighting and keep on climbing,” said Tanquingcen after they notched a third straight win with an 81-71 drubbing of the Meralco Bolts Sunday.

It was historic being the 800th win in franchise history.

Barako slid to seventh place following back-to-back losses to B-Meg and Powerade.

If they fail to rise from there, the Energy play the second-seeded team in the quarterfinals, needing to win two in a row to advance to the semis.

The third seed goes up against the sixth seed and the fourth seed plays the fifth seed in a pair of best-of-three quarterfinals series.

The other quarterfinals pairing pits the top seed versus No. 8.

“The goal really is not just to make the quarterfinals. Kailangan maiwasan namin lumaban against a team with a twice-to-beat advantage. Mabigat yon,” Tanquingcen insisted.

Needless to say, the Energy have the same thing in mind. (SB)