Vengeance and 4-game win run

by Josef Ramos
Wednesday, 2 July 2008 (522 Views, 23 Comments)

AIR21 wants something more after milestone – revenge.

Coach Bo Perasol knows how important to achieve this win against Purefoods despite knowing the fact his boys are already enjoying their first ever outright semifinals slot right now since joining the league in 2002.

“I’m telling the boys over and over again that making it to outright semifinals doesn’t end there,” said Perasol, referring to Air21’s last game in the elimination round of 33rd PBA Fiesta Conference against Purefoods Wednesday night at the Araneta Coliseum.

“Winning our last game will definitely boost our morale,” he said. “We want to keep our momentum going and our confidence at a high level going into the playoffs. In short, we need to be consistent. So we need to get back at Purefoods.”

The Express, who face the Giants at 4:50pm in the first game, sealed their first ever No. 1 outright semifinals slot with a league-leading 11-6 card after the Magnolia Beverage Masters (10-8) nipped the Alaska Aces (9-8), 80-79, last Sunday.

In order to become successful on that mission, Steve Thomas, the 6-foot-9 hulking workhorse import, should maintain his big time performance (24.7 points and 16 rebounds per game) to keep the Express soaring.

Local starters Gary David, Homer Se, Ranidel De Ocampo and Wynne Arboleda are there to start the fire, while Nino KG Canaleta, Arwind Santos, Marvin Cruz, Doug Kramer and Gabby Espinas, among others are also there to keep it.

But the Purefoods Giants, who hold an 8-9 log at seventh and eighth tied with Talk ‘N Text, are expected to play whatever it takes against the Express to stay alive in the top five for the last quarterfinals outright.

7-foot-1 import Reda Rhalimi, the deadly duo backcourt partnership of guard James Yap and Peter June Simon, and the frontline combination of Enrico Villanueva, Kerby Rymundo and Jon Dan Salvador are there to deliver the goods for the Giants.

Gary David, who averaged 12 points since returning from knee injury last year, said “it is now time for the Express to go up.”

John Christopher Intal, the Express’ fourth overall pick last year, might suite up tonight depending on the suggestion of his dermatologist. Intal did not play in the last 17 games of the Express this conference due to a serious skin rash problem.

Posted in News

Comments(23)

-=311=- Wednesday, 2 July 2008 at 10:30 am

yan ang gus2 ko na team kahit outright semis na talunin pa rin natin ang PF!!
borodong Wednesday, 2 July 2008 at 11:19 am

wre on the top.we know our team is the best hahahaha.
no d answer Wednesday, 2 July 2008 at 11:48 am

Guys nood kayo ng show namin sa TV tom 5 pm sa channel 3 ng destiny cable baka hindi lang si coach bo ang guest ko baka pati na din si steve thomas once ko na sya na guest sa program ko alam ko mdmi kayo tanong sa kanila pls let me know itatanong ko yan sa kanila tom Salamat
chris21 Wednesday, 2 July 2008 at 11:59 am

ok na naman kahit matalo tayo, BUT mas maganda ang nasa top tayo at makuha natin ang revenge sa PF…

kayang kaya natin sila!
jcintallover Wednesday, 2 July 2008 at 12:43 pm

josef kailan talaga maglalaro si JC INTAL? yung sure na talaga. di ba magaling na magaling na sya?
torch Wednesday, 2 July 2008 at 6:58 pm

whooo. 30 pts ngawa ni gary nc1 wlang team n hindi ntin bnigyan ng talo ngaun!!!!! gud luck s semis n ulit ang lban…go air21 go
adrian Wednesday, 2 July 2008 at 7:16 pm

yes….

gary david
adrian Wednesday, 2 July 2008 at 7:18 pm

champion na ito air21dbest
-=311=- Wednesday, 2 July 2008 at 7:33 pm

lufet naman ng idol q woooooooooo gus2 ko na magbasa ng article hahahahaha
-=311=- Wednesday, 2 July 2008 at 9:28 pm

well hehehe bukas na lang!!
-=311=- Wednesday, 2 July 2008 at 10:03 pm

ito na ohh

OUTRIGHT SEMIFINALIST AIR21 ENDS ELIMS WITH A BANG
David fires season-high 30 to lead Express in come-from-behind win over Purefoods
Wednesday, 02 July 2008

Image

THE game may have been a non-bearing one, but the fire inside Air21 burned so intensely that it did not hand out a freebie to a Purefoods team that badly needed a win.

The Express showed this by coming back from a 14-point deficit through a big second half and foiling the Giants 113-103 Wednesday night in the Smart PBA Fiesta Conference at the Araneta Coliseum.

“Our rallying point was that if we want to achieve something bigger, we have to show it kahit sa mga games na walang bearing,” said Air21 head coach Bo Perasol whose team has long been assured of an automatic semifinal berth.

“Isa pa, ang character ng mga players ko is such that they really want to win, to show they are really winners,” he added.

Gary David typified that desire by coming up with a personal season-high 30 points, 20 coming in the second half as Air21 charged back from a 29-43 second quarter deficit.

Also playing big roles were Wynne Arboleda and Arwind Santos, who each scored eight points in the fourth period and charged up the Express’ blistering windup from the game’s third and final deadlock at 101, still 1:25 left in the game.

In the end, Air21 wound up the eliminations with a 12-6 win-loss card and Perasol said the memory of the stirring victory will serve them in good stead in their long layoff while majority of the rest of the field go through the wildcard and quarterfinals.

“It’s good to end up on a winning note,” said Perasol, who bared his team will be going to a Batangas beach resort on Friday for some more bonding.

It was a debilitating loss for Purefoods, which went into the game hoping for a victory that will improve its erstwhile 8-9 slate.

Instead, the Giants were relegated to the knockout wildcard phase where the No. 6 team meets No. 9 and Nos. 7 and 8 square off.

All because of a big fourth quarter collapse, when the Giants could only score 19 points while giving up 35. They also committed seven turnovers, most of them coming after they razed a 94-101 deficit to tie the game up for the last time.

Ranidel de Ocampo’s jumper shattered the deadlock and Santos’ three-point play off Kerby Raymundo sent Air21 well on its way to victory.

James Yap led Purefoods with 24 points, but he scored only one point in the third quarter, when the Express continuously chipped away at the Giants’ 59-49 halftime lead to tie it at 74, before ceding a 78-84 deficit going into the fourth.

Steven Thomas had an off-night offensively with just 13 points, but he did have a game-high 17 rebounds to go with six shotblocks and five assists. Paling in comparison were Purefoods counterpart Reda Rhalimi’s 14 points and seven rebounds.

The seven-foot Moroccan also committed all of his four tuirnovers in the fourth.
Raymundo had 20 points, a team-high 16 rebounds and five assists, but he got blocked by Santos in a key possession and he gave up Santos’ three-point play that gave the Express a 106-101 lead, 48.9 ticks left.

Also fading in the stretch were Chico Lanete and Peter June Simon, who were instrumental in helping Purefoods gain control in the early goings and seemingly well on their way to the much-needed win.

Back-to-back triples by David and Arboleda pushed Air21 ahead, 95-94, and heralded Purefoods’ impending collapse going into the last five minutes of the game.

Lanete scattered five points and Simon three during a 14-3 run, giving the Giants their biggest lead of the game at 43-29, 6:49 to go in the second period. (NCo)

Air 21 (113) — David 30, Arboleda 20, De Ocampo 15, Thomas 13, Santos 13, Canaleta 10, Intal 4, Se 4, Kraner 2, Cruz 2, Espinas 0, Billones 0.

Purefoods (103) — Yap J. 24, Raymundo 20, Lanete 16, Simon 16, Rhalimi 14, Villanueva 6, Yap R. 5, Salvador 2, Yee 0.

Quarters: 22-27, 49-59, 78-84, 113-103.
RRV Wednesday, 2 July 2008 at 11:00 pm

Nakabalik na si “The Rocket”!! Wohooo
jmarc Thursday, 3 July 2008 at 12:41 am

2nd ako!!!!!
GREAT JOB GUYS!
NOW WE HAVE ALREADY BEATEN EVERY TEAM IN THE PBA THIS CONFERENCE.TWAS NICE TO GET BACK AT PUREFOODS AFTER LOSING TO THEM IN THE 1ST RD.NOW WE HAVE PROVEN TO EVERYONE NA HINDI TSAMBA ANG PAGKA AUTOMATIC SEMIS NATIN, KAHIT PALA SANA TINALO NG ALASKA ANG MAGNOLIA EH PAPASOK TALAGA TAYO KASI NILAMPASO NATIN ANG PF TO GET THE MAGIC 12 WINS.
BAHALA NA ANG IBANG TEAM NA MAGKLAGULO NGAYON, THE WAY I SE (HOMER)HEHEEH, IT AIR21 AT RED BULL ANG AUTO SEMIS.
BUTI NMAN AT MAY PAHINGA ANG TEAM, GRABE DIN ANG DINAANAN NA MGA GAMES NG MGA DELIVERY BOYS!PURO DIKIT PERO OKAY NA YAN KASI NAHAHASA ANG TEAM SA DIKDIKAN NA LABAN NA MAKAKATULONG SA MATURITY AT EXPERIENCE NG TEAM.
WELCOME BACK JC…4 POINTS,OKAY YAN…DAGDAG BALA SA ATIN YAN.
SA MGA FANS…LET US GIVE CREDIT TO WHERE IT IS DUE…FOR COACH BO NA ALAM NATIN NA DI BUMIGAY SA MGA PAGSUBOK NA NADAANAN NYA AT BATIKOS HANDLING THE TEAM AND NOW EH REAPING THE DIVIDENDS NA SYA…DONT STOP TAKE US HOME TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP COACH!
GREAT JOB DIN SA MGA ASSISTANT NI COACH BO NA SI COACH LEO ISAAC AT COACH BENJIE SIPIN AND COACH CHESTER TIONGSON.THE ENTRY OF ISAAC HAS GIVEN THE PLAYERS THE NEEDED GUIDANCE FROM A FORMER PBA STAR,AND A DECORATED COLLEGIATE COACH.HIS ENTRY HAS GIVEN COACH BO THE NEEDED SUPPORT IN DEALING WITH IN GAME SITUATIONS AS WELL AS PRACTICE ORGANIZATION.SIPIN ACCDG TO SOURCES PROVIDES THE NEEDED TEACHING TOOLS FOR COACH BO AND THE PLAYERS VIA HIS EXPERTISE IN SCOUTING OPPONENTS AND VIDEO EDITING AND TIONGSON MAKES SURE THAT THE PLAYERS ARE FIT AND IN GOOD CONDITION TO FINISH STRONG DURING GAMES AS EVIDENT WITH THE CLOSE GAMES THE TEAM HAS WON.COACH BO HAS BEEN OPEN TO THE FACT AND IS APPRECIATIVE OF THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF HIS STAFF BUT MORE THAN WHAT COACH BO AND HIS STAFFF CAN GIVE TO THE PLAYERS IT ALL BOILS DOWN TO HOW THE PLAYERS ACCEPT AND BELIEVE IN WHAT THEY ARE DOING AS A TEAM.

WE ALSO GIVE CREDIT TO THE RECOVERY OF GARY DAVID AND STEVE THOMAS.WITH THE RETURN OF GARY DAVID TO 100% AIR21 GOT THE ADDITIONAL FIREPOWER/SLASHER AND PERIMETER SCORER WHO CAN BREAKDOWN THE DEFENSE FOR HIS SCORING OPPORTUNITIES OR TO CREATE FOR HIS TEAMMATES.THOMAS HAS GIVEN THE TEAM THE MUSCLE IN THE POST SLOT.
GIVE CREDIT FOR MGMT, BOSS LITO FOR GETTING AND FORMING THIS TEAM,BOSS…BUTI WALA NA KAYO BINAGO MASYADO SA COMPOSITION NG TEAM…SABI NMAAN SA INYO TYAGA LANG, PAG NABUO NA ANG TEAM EH AANI NA TAYO NG MGA TINANIM NATIN.KEEPING THE TEAM INTACT, YAN ANG FORMULA NG CURRENT SUCCESS NATIN NGAYON!

KEEP IT UP DELIVERY BOYS!!!GREAT JOB!!!!WE ARE PROUD OF YOU!!!

PAHINGA MUNA AT PAGHANDAAN ANG MAS MATINDING MGA LABANAN SA SEMIS AT SANA SA FINALS!!!!

GO AIR21…FIGHT,FIGHT,FIGHT!!!!!!

GO EXPRESS DANCERS!!!!!!!

VANESSA OF ABC 5 i hEarT U..UR SO HOT!!!!!!
neil Thursday, 3 July 2008 at 11:49 am

nung 1st half, naiisip ko, kung ako coach nagalit na ko… sasabihin ko “Guys, ganyan ba ang larong dadalin natin sa semis?” no other words…

And, wahaha, siguro nga medyo napagsabihan sila ni coach Bo kaya naman bumawi sila ng 2nd half… pansin ko, we always start strong sa 1st few minutes ng 1st quarter then medyo magcocollapse sa 2nd Q… tapos hahabol sa 3rd Q and makikipag buno sa 4th Q to win… Wow, nakakakaba ang style niyo pero ASTIG talaga… Worth it ang panonood… unpredictable tuloy minsan ang express kasi hndi mo alam kung kelan or kung sino ang puputok or dapat bantayan kasi any1 can deliver…

Firepower, marami tayo niyan… masasabi ng iba na inconsistent ang mga players natin pero it has it’s own purpose… kasi iba iba ang pumuputok kada laro… kung hndi magclick sa opensa, bawing bawi naman sa depensa and vice versa…

Yan ang pinagkaiba natin sa ibang mga teams na puro superstar, hndi nila mamaximize ang laro or playing time ng mga players… Kasi yung ibang players, they can’t accept na hndi lahat ng laro, sila ang gagawa, sometimes, they SHOULD take other roles to give way to the other players na mainit… Yan ang nakikita ko sa express, negative sa unang tingin kasi nga, Arwind, KG, Ranidel, Wynne, Se, Egay, and the rest, hndi sila pumuputok every game…. PERO I salute them kasi yung hustle, deffense, credits na di makikita sa stats sheet, eh nandun kapag off night sila sa opensa…

Kasi bakit mo ipipilit umiskor kung may ibang gumagawa at kung may ibang mainit? bumawi ka sa ibang aspects ng game, sometimes, u have to sacrifice ur offense to challenge urself sa ibang roles…kahit alam mong go-to-guy ang tingin sa’yo ng iba…

Kaya naman, special mention to ARWIND, KG, and RANIDEL… these guys are known for their offensive prowess, pero this conference, they showed everyone na they r complete packages… na dahil lang sa hndi ka umiiskor eh tatamarin ka na…ang daming times na dahil sa mga hustle, depensa, rebounds, blocks, assists nila eh naipapanalo nila ang game…

Even Gary D., napatunayan niya na hndi lang siya scorer… to Steve, although napapasarap ka minsan sa kakajump shot, thumbs up for your efforts sa court… BEST IMPORT NA YAN! just work out more sa mga post up moves mo sa semis at sa FINALS!

Coach Bo, wala ko masabi sa ginawa mong new system sa team… we are 9-2 this conference kapag nalilimitahan natin ang kalaban sa below 100 points and 3-4 kapag above 100 ang opponent. This simply shows na we are now an offensive and deffensive team to consider na…

To the other players, thanks for giving your best every game, you know your individual roles sa team…

To the fans, let’s continue supporting and praying for the team…

God bless us all!
---lyka-- Thursday, 3 July 2008 at 4:13 pm

w0w..gling tlga ng team ntin
d’ best cla..
last 1 minute n lng ung npnood ko ung laro last nyt..
sna mgtuloy-tuloy to ‘gang finals..
sna cla mgchampion
ipagppray ko yan..
saludo ako sa lhat ng player ng air21..
---spidergirl>>>>> Thursday, 3 July 2008 at 4:20 pm

gling tlga nla ranideL,KG,Arboleda,thomas,SE,
and to my one and only idoL
ARWIND SANTOS..
sna umbot tau hnggang finals..
09097303010..i wnt to hve friends n fans ng air21,
lalo n ng idol kong c SANTOS!!
pls..
GUDLUCK SA AIR21..
tgal p ng nxt game nla..
im gonna miz them..heheheh
Mheems Thursday, 3 July 2008 at 10:12 pm

Guys, can you say CHAMPION?
Woohoo, way to go Air 21.

Kudos to KG for showcasing a good defensive strategy. He may be known as a great offensive player but he’s making improvements na din regarding his defensive stat.

So happy

Mheems

P.S.
If you guys have time, please visit http://www.candymag.com/coc . I blog there too
REGEN OF CAVITE Monday, 7 July 2008 at 7:42 pm

CHAMBA LANG KAYO….PUREFOODS WILL GET BACK SOON…
AND WILL BEAT UR DAMN ASSESS….HEHE..

IN SHORT.. PANANDALIAN LANG YAN…
noname Monday, 7 July 2008 at 8:04 pm

haha isa pa to! hoy taong grasa! mag sama kayo ng purefoods mong pang wild card! sa basura!haha asa ka! inggits kasi number one kami! mga talunan!
torch Tuesday, 8 July 2008 at 7:53 am

ang npili pang team i nsa wildcard anong tingin madali lng makalusot s wildcard?asa hahaha
torch Tuesday, 8 July 2008 at 8:02 am

REGEN OF CAVITE lam q n kung bk8 k ngkakaganyan kc kmi ang team n huling tumalo s inyo !!!!pinagbigyan n nga n mkalamang ng 1st -4th qtr d p din npangalagaan….at wildcard p din kau if nkaCHAMBA kau s air21 nung huling laban 10 wins ang dpat s qtr finals at kau 9-9 kung nka CHAMBA hindi n masama pra s WILDCARd………hahahaha
lujille Tuesday, 8 July 2008 at 5:40 pm

haha isa pa yng regen of cavite intruder..
katulad din siya ng katabi ko sa araneta na fans ng purefoods nung nanood ako nung sunday mayabang,sobrang angas madumi daw maglaro express, tapos si gary daw panis kay james at si arwind lalamunin ng buhay ni kirby..hahaha kaso nung naglaban na yung mga pinagmamalaki niya nasan natalo hahaha sobrang saya ko talaga nung sunday mura na lng siya ng mura hehehe.. supalpal kc c kirby c james ndi nakaporma ng 4th quarter..

ma mimis ko ang panonood ng live yun n yung huli kong nood sana bago ko umalis ng pinas sa katapusan maabutan ko yung semis… ma mimis ko si kuya arwind yung crush ko na si cyrus baguio at marvin cruz,. at ang air21 team…..

gudluck na lng sa semis!! nararamdaman ko championship na to wala lng dapat kokontra…
hehehe!!!!!!

kuya arwind galingan mo pa lalo depensa.. lam ko my award ka pa ring makukuha..
c thomas sana kaw maging best import deserving ka para dun…

gudluck sa team go go express……
sporadik Sunday, 20 July 2008 at 10:22 pm

glingan nyo guyz mgchachampion dn tau!teamwork lng kelangan tlaga.to Arwind gling mo p idol kita,actually lht kau,c david,arboleda,se,de ocampo,intal,cruz,billiones,sotto,KG dami p nga nwala s inyo c telan,ritualo,tubid,ferriols,pingris,cnusubaybayn ko kc kau taon-taon,gud luck nlng po.Sana manalo ulit tau^_^