Men on a mission

We NOT Me #15
(Photo credit to PBA.Inquirer.Net)

Milk-men, that is.

So after plowing through the competition in both the elimination and quarterfinal rounds, the Alaska Aces find themselves back in the PBA (Philippine Cup) Finals for the 29th time (this must be some sort of local record) and gunning for championship number 15. Truthfully, there has been no other team as consistent and relentless as the Aces since last season which only tells you how hard this team competes under coach Alex Compton et al.

Sure, the San Miguel Beermen have taken home the titles while the Rain or Shine Elastopainters are always up in the Top  (both teams are currently entangled in their own semifinals showdown), but we often see those two dropping in performance from time to time. The Aces? They start games slow, but when they are able to bring in their 2nd unit (usually anchored by Calvin Abueva and Vic Manuel) that is when they are able to really turn things around and provide stellar defensive basketball.


With all due respect to their vanquished opponents, the Globalport Batang Pier, the Aces were just on a different class (bunched up with SMB, RoS and probably Talk'n'Text *when healthy*). The Batang Pier put up a gallant fight and even stole Game 1, but once the Aces decided to buckle down on defense and not allow Terrence Romeo to steal the headlines, well, it was over as early as Game 2 when guys (mostly on the younger GP side) lost their composure and all.

Ah, that game 2 1st quarter fracas.

It took the Batang Pier squad out of their comfort zone. Romeo danced less, Stanley Pringle drove to the rim less, and their aging frontline just couldn't handle the heat. Once the Aces flexed their muscles, it seemed as though Batang Pier didn't want any of the physicality and psy-war. Jay Washington tried to put up a fight, but then he remembered that this type of helter-skelter, hustling, palitan-ng-mukha basketball is not the way he plays.

And that was that.

Abueva and Manuel led the charge. RJ Jazul, Ping Exciminiano and Chris Banchero took the baton from their starting guards who appeared to look old as hell versus GP's young dynamic duo. Sonny Thoss was relevant, even.

Going into the PBA Finals, the Aces are primed. They were denied twice last season by the Beermen, and if things go as this writer expects it, they will face each other for a third time.

Dondon Hontiveros, the team's 38-year-old chief gunner, is already flirting with the ideas of retiring should they win the title altogether. Nothing left to prove, really. But that statement of his comes with a threat to whoever they face, meaning he is bent on delivering number 15 to Mr. Wilfred Uytengsu, and is ready to take on all comers be it Marcio Lassiter or Jeffrei Chan.

Should the Aces face the Beermen, they will be riddled with the same problems-- the one that starts with having to guard 6"10 2x PBA MVP Junemar Fajardo, while also trying to limit everyone else.

Should it be the Elastopainters, then they have to match physicality with physicality, tenacity with tenacity, wit with wit (re: gulang), while also trying to remember that they are still playing a basketball game and not wrestling at the Araneta Coliseum.

Hey, nobody said it was going to be easy.

#15