The PBA Pinoy Cup Finals: Talk N Text vs Powerade

After an exciting semifinals series that could've gone either way if a basket or two were only made, we're now being treated to a rather unexpected yet enthralling Finals match-up with league powerhouse and defending champions Talk 'n' Text Tropang Texters and the "Cinderella" team, the 8th seeded Powerade Tigers.

To win, Tigers' need Lassiter to stay on the floor

Keys for the Tigers

1. Run and gun
- It's pretty obvious that the Tigers lack the legit point guard who makes scoring opportunities for his teammates. They have PGs who can handle the rock and rotate the basketball, but mostly, these guys are natural born shooters (Rudy Lingganay being the odd man out). JVee Casio and Celino Cruz need to run and keep pushing the pace to spread the floor and not let the Texters vaunted defense (which was modified halfway in the Petron series but wasn't recognized outright by most) set-up shop.



2. Control the boards
- When the Tigers' forced BMeg and Rain or Shine to play their way-- which is to shoot, shoot and shoot, it was a brilliant ploy to get long rebounds (expected from long range misses). Doug Kramer, Alex Crisano, Rommel Adducul and Sean Anthony have a lot of work to do in this series to ensure that the Tigers marches on to the title.

3. Protect the rim
- Here's a problem. They have bangers for centers, but no shotblockers or intimidators. The Texters boast of two of the better slashers in the league (when healthy) and we'll talk about that in a bit.

4. Keep Marcio Lassiter on the floor
- They can survive playing without Gary David for stretches because they'll still have JVee Casio and vice versa. The Tigers won't survive if Lassiter goes back to his natural, gambling tendencies and gets whistled for touch fouls early. Doug Kramer is their guy on the block for defense, but Lassiter is the "do-it-all" perimeter defender of the team. If he takes a seat, Sean Anthony won't be enough to stop the Texters' guards.

Keys for the Texters 

1. Run to the rim
- While the Tigers run from 3 point line to 3 point line, the Texters' guards usually led by Jayson "The Blur" Castro run straight to the rim. This will create all sorts of problems for the Tigers- fouls for bigs and wings, unable to set-up their so-so defense and also, they won't be able to grab long rebounds and fastbreak because the closer the shots to the rim are, the shorter the defensive rebounding angles.

2. Control the tempo
- Easier said than done. In a world of machismo and egos, it's hard not to try and engage the Tigers in their "shootout" gameplay. BMeg was suckered into it believing they had shooters in James Yap and PJ Simon (they're scorers who need 20 shots to get 25 points). Rain or Shine believed that their balanced rotation was enough to counteract the huge numbers by the big three. No. And no. We've been begging for coaches to not fall into the Tigers' Trap for days now. And Coach Chot Reyes definitely knows enough to not let his team spiral out of control-- that's what championship experience will do for you.

3. Stay disciplined
- Again, while reigning MVP Jimmy Alapag is a threat to pull up for a 30 feet three (and miss widely) for a heat check, Coach Chot Reyes has been through enough wars and seen countless styles to not recognize that his best chances of winning are to play in the halfcourt. This is where the Texters' depth comes into play. They can "run to the rim" with Jayson Castro and Jarred Dillinger or they can set up halfcourt with Ranidel de Ocampo and Larry Fonacier.

4. Ranidel de Ocampo a.k.a. Dr. De Ocampo
- More on this below.

The match-ups:

PG JVee Casio vs Jimmy Alapag
- Casio's lean-in threes will create problems for Alapag on the defensive end, but this is where being years wiser comes into play. Alapag isn't the cross-overing guard of yesteryears, but he has shown in the last series that he still has enough in the tank to carry the Texters when need be. IF Casio can get Alapag in foul trouble, that would only mean that Jayson Castro slides down to PG-- and then everyone will realize why KKS has always said that Casio isn't at par- speed-wise with the elite PGs of the PBA.
ADV - TNT

SG Gary David vs Ryan Reyes/ Jayson Castro
- This would've been a stellar match-up had Reyes not injured his wrist and have lingering leg concerns. Behind his old Santa Lucia Realtors (and now Petron) "kuya" Denok Miranda, Reyes is arguably the best perimeter defender in the league today-- complete with "kanto gulang" and all. Remember that SLR-Purefoods and SLR-Alaska match-ups from years back? KKS does. And it was Reyes/ Miranda who kept James Yap and Willie Miller on lock. Can Reyes do it again versus the Bataan Bomber? Yes, KKS thinks so. But the Bataan Bomber's just too good (and has enough shooting freedom to jack up 30 shots if he wants to) to not put up big numbers. Then there's Jayson Castro. The speed demon that could very well decide this series. David's bigger, but not in Castro's speed division. Casio would get tortured. Lingganay's solid, but small. Cruz? Ditto.
ADV - TNT

SF Marcio Lassiter vs Jarred Dillinger/ Larry Fonacier
- Lassiter's been doing well so far, but he's not quick enough to be shifted to guard Castro and will probably just stay put at his natural SF assignments. Dillinger is a flashy guard who relies on his athleticism but is also a streaky shooter- Lassiter can handle him. Fonacier on the other hand, trumps both with his high basketball IQ and championship poise. Fonacier can't stop Lassiter from driving to the lane or taking jumpers though.
ADV - POW

Agimat ng Cavite, Dr. De Ocampo

PF Sean Anthony/ Will Antonio vs Ranidel de Ocampo/ Kelly Williams
Anthony's raw. Antonio's too fat and has always been a perimeter defender-- if the Doctor decides to post him up, not even Antonio's new, bulkier frame can stop the best Pinoy big man today. Forget about it. The only way the Doctor doesn't land 20 a game is if he coasts yet again. Or if Rommel Adducul strings together throwback performances worthy of the Manila MetroStars years.

Oh, and if anything, Kelly Williams, former PBA MVP, is just waiting on the wings for the Doctor to go "Out" so he can do his double double thing.
ADV - TNT

C Doug Kramer vs Ali Peek
Now we'll get to see if the added muscle (or pounds) on the Big Doug is enough to handle the Man Mountain (who is an inch or two shorter). This series will be decided by which team controls the rebounds, and both men did just that in their last outings for their respective ballclubs.
ADV - POW

Don't count on Japeth Aguilar to rise up and "RELEASE THE KRAKEN" in this series. Consistently anyway. His energy, height and athleticism will be a big challenge for the Tigers-- but once Crisano, Kramer or Adducul puts a shot into the enigmatic young forward's frame, he'll probably go back and settle for jumpers like he always does.

And finally, Chot Reyes (plus Nash Racela and so on) > Bo Perasol (and ex Nash Racela underling with the Batangas Blades Alex Compton).