PBA Commish Cup Semis: The Exorcism of Luigi Trillo

The MAN for the job.

There was a point in this series wherein it seemed that no matter how far the Alaska Aces have gone under young head coach Luigi Trillo, that they would never rid themselves of the ghost of Tim Cone. It's bad enough that they haven't beaten Cone until this series, but also because it was starting to make every single reason that Cone et al came up with seem true.

You can't win big in the PBA without stars. You can't win big in the PBA without money. You. Just. Can't. Win.

But after four grueling, intense and highly entertaining games, the Aces have not only triumphed over Cone and the depleted San Mig Coffee Mixers, they have managed to exorcise their own demons and proven themselves worthy of their now growing Gatas Republik's adoration.
Trillo out coached his former mentor in this series, making key substitutions and just making the correct reads when needed. He stuck to guys who were in foul trouble just like in tonight's game and they delivered for him.  More importantly, he knew when and how to "unleash the Beast" that is rookie Calvin Abueva.

On the Aces roster there are the anchors, the stabilizing forces known as veteran leaders Sonny Thoss, Cyrus Baguio and Tony de la Cruz. There's JVee Casio, continuing to impress as an elite level point guard after years of terrorizing opponents as a money clutch player. True enough, Casio is the only soul we've ever seen who can completely ignore a frenetic Abueva on offense if it means setting up a drawn up play for someone else.

If Abueva is fire, Casio is ice.

Tonight, the Mixers finally took a chance and sat out hurting 2x PBA MVP James Yap who was trying his best to lead his team but just wasn't physically fit to do so. Import Denzel Bowles, clutch a shooter as he is, still hasn't done anything "monstrous" for the Mixers.

That made life easier for Trillo and the Aces. They zeroed in on Yap's running buddy PJ Simon and pretty much dared anyone and everyone else to try to take their stingy defense on. Joe DeVance was making some noise in the third, but cooled down when the Aces put Abueva on him the rest of the way. The Aces threw in a bit of a zone which the Mixers couldn't shoot their way out of and that proved to give the Aces enough room to take the lead come 4th quarter.

Trillo went with the then under performing Abueva. He put in Casio despite being riddled with fouls. Thoss was in there as well. Import Rob Dozier, who only had a solitary point to his name, was also on the floor despite being outplayed by his locals.

Guess what? The gamble paid off. Abueva was unleashed. He flopped, but he made stops. He flopped, but he made shots. Love him or hate him, his imprint was all over the quarter and it seemed as though the heart pumping inside his 6"1 1/2 frame was bigger than the Mixers and their Planet combined.

When all was said and done there was Trillo, engulfed in the moment and pouring his heart out. The Gatas Republik roared and were in a frenzy, the Mixers and their fans fought bravely and gallantly but were outmanned and outplayed. Hats off to them and coach Tim Cone who put on a defensive clinic early in the series.

No matter what happens in the Finals, this series cements Trillo's claim to the PBA. He was a joke in the UAAP with the Adamson Falcons. He was so-so in the D League and we believed that his wins were caused more by having a man monster named Vic Manuel in the fold.

Now? He deserves all the credit. Though he has stars like Thoss, Bguio, Casio and Abueva, he is the guy who put it together. He won it for the Aces. He proved that they can win big in the PBA.

With or without the money.