Texters bounce back, stop Batang Pier

MANILA, Philippines -- More than from its shock loss Kia the last time out, Talk n Text drew huge motivation from a first ever defeat at the hands of Globalport last conference as the Tropang Texters got back at the Batang Pier, 96-88, and secured an outright playoff berth in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum Sunday night.

Ivan Johnson came through with 35 points and 20 rebounds while Ranidel de Ocampo contributed 25 markers, five boards and three assists as the Texters avenged a 97-105 loss to the Batang Pier in the Philippine Cup and, in the process, grabbed the solo lead in the mid-season tourney with a 6-2 win-loss card.

The Batang Pier went down to 4-4 after suffering a first loss in their last three games.

“Our loss to Globalport last conference, more than our last game against Kia, gave us the extra motivation to win this game,” said coach Jong Uichico, recalling the night when his troops were torched by Terrence Romeo with his fiery 30-point game.

It was Talk n Text’s first loss in eight head-on matches with the Mikee Romero-owned ball club.

“We came in really focused and we got a good win going to the All-Star break,” said Uichico.

“We’re not playing until March 14 against Purefoods, and we can work on something during the break,” Uichico also said, adding they’re pursuing a Top Two finish for a twice-to-beat advantage in the quarterfinals.

“We hope to keep on winning, but we have three tough games ahead of us,” said Uichico referring to their tiffs versus Purefoods, San Miguel Beer and Alaska Milk.

Heading to homestretch of the elims, the Texters got back on the winning track with a solid job on both ends – their effort on defense netting 17 Globalport turnovers that they turned to 22 points.

The Texters, for their part, protected their possessions so well, committing just four errors.

Johnson and his teammates made a big turnaround from their scrambling performance against the Kia Carnival, steadiest versus the Batang Pier in the payoff period where they led by 13 at 96-83.

“(We missed doing) a little adjustment here and there against Kia. Tonight, we did a pretty good job defensively that we translated into offense,” said Uichico.

Johnson dished out his most productive performance since taking over from Rich Howell, going 7-of-14 from the two-point zone, 3-of-10 from beyond the arc and 12-of-15 from the line.

A former Atlanta Hawk and Dallas Maverick, the 6-foot-7 forward helped fuel their second-half breakaway in making eight points in the third period and 11 in the final canto.