Gin Kings turn tables on Beermen in Game 1

MANILA, Philippines – Barangay Ginebra came out smoking, led by as many as 18 points and fended off a San Miguel Beer rally at the finish for a 102-96 win in the opener of the Motolite PBA Fiesta Conference finale at the Araneta Coliseum last night.

Top gun Jayjay Helterbrand and five other Ginebra players played key roles as the Kings defied the odds, gaining the decisive head start in the best-of-seven championship series.

Helterbrand and Paul Artadi got the team to a big start then Sunday Salvacion, Cyrus Baguio and David Noel took over to sustain the pace before Ronald Tubid had his key contributions helping keep the Beermen at bay.

“We’re still in the drawing board. It so happened that what we talked about and what we planned works in this game,” said Ginebra coach Jong Uichico.

“We like this situation, winning Game One. But a first game in the series is just a first game. It takes four games to win and we know the talent of San Miguel. They can be so overpowering that we really need to exert extra effort,” Uichico added.

“We’re not mentally prepared to play this game,” rued San Miguel coach Siot Tanquingcen.

“We let them convert 40 percent from the three-point area and grab 20 offensive rebounds. That did us in,” Tanquingcen added. “They missed some shots but they got the rebounds. Our defense shouldn’t stop in having them miss their shots. We should only stop when we get the ball.”

Helterbrand led all scorers with 21 points and added seven assists and six rebounds in a sterling performance in 38 minutes of action.

Baguio, Tubid, Artadi and Noel also scored in double figures for the Kings who surprisingly dominated the favored Beermen, leading by as many as 18 at 81-63.

The Beermen came threateningly close in the homestretch but the Kings stayed intact, holding SMB at bay on clutch shots by Tubid at the finish. Tubid fired seven of his 14 points in the last 32 seconds.

The Kings took an early double-digit spread at 19-9 and led by as many as 17, 53-36, before settling for a 53-41 spread at the half.

Helterbrand and Artadi started strong with the former going 4-of-7 from the three-point area and totaling 19 points in the first half and the latter knocking in three triples and a total of 11 points in the first five minutes of the contest.

With Gabe Freeman and Jay Washington hitting their strides, the Beermen came within two at 24-26 only to see the Kings make another decisive attack to rip the game apart at 53-36 with 1:54 left in the second quarter.

Helterbrand converted three of four three-point tries in the second period, the last capping the big blast that gave them the 17-point margin.

The Beermen made it a more manageable deficit as they scored seven unanswered points the rest of the first half.

Burger King walloped an undermanned Rain or Shine side, 132-118, to clinch third place honors in their one game duel.