Powerade-RP whips Indons

Powerade-RP whips Indons

MEDAN – The torrential jeers from the boisterous hometown crowd and the steady chanting of In-do-ne-sia! rained down on Powerade-Team Pilipinas from the onset late Sunday.

Then James Yap and the rest of the national team decided they had enough of the local abuse heaped on them.

Yap poured 13 of his game-high 21 points in the first half, drilling in three consecutive triples in one breathtaking run in the second quarter as Powerade-RP clobbered host Indonesia, 103-64, for its second straight win in the 8th Southeast Asian Basketball Association Men’s Championship at the Angkasapura Lanud Basketball Hall.

The PBA-backed national team, bound for the 25th FIBA World Championship qualifier in Tianjin, China in August, was to play winless Singapore Monday night with the intention of moving into the final game Tuesday against the winner of the Indonesia-Malaysia encounter later that evening.

The Nationals blasted the Malaysians, 100-73, Saturday, a game where the Nationals lost point guard Ryan Reyes to a pulled hamstring muscle on his left thigh.

Reyes joined injured teammates Jayjay Helterbrand and Sonny Thoss in serving as utility personnel during the pre-game shootaround, and they sat together at the far-end corner of the bench whopping when the Nationals started ripping the Indons apart.

A different version from the one the Chot Reyes-mentored RP team pummeled in Ratchaburi, Thailand two years ago, took a 5-2 lead as Powerade-RP went blank on its next six possessions after Asi Taulava broke the ice.

But the Nationals got going with an 11-0 run to silence the packed spectators, and the closest the Indons came to an upset was 13-11 before Yap turned hot.

As expected, the opposition got a boost not only from their compatriots.

Yap picked up two quick fouls eight minutes into the game, and Jared Dillinger got whistled for three halfway through the second quarter.

With less than a minute left in the half, Yap was called for his third personal, but not after the Purefoods hotshot had drained three consecutive triples to give the Philippines its first 20-point lead, 42-22.

Indonesia picked up just four fouls in the first 20 minutes.

Just about everybody got into the act from there, with Gabe Norwood and Arwind Santos throwing down vicious dunks one after the other and Willie Miller and slasher Cyrus Baguio turning the Indonesian shaded lane into a freeway.

In the trenches, Kerby Raymundo grabbed 10 rebounds, Mick Pennisi 9 with 2 blocked shots, Ranidel de Ocampo 8, and Dillinger and Taulava 5 each.

The lead was 75-45 after three quarters and 97-56 – a whopping 41 points – by the time the slam-dunk exhibition had reached its peak.

“I feel a lot better. I’m actually relieved,” said national coach Yeng Guiao. “I knew we could play better than we did against Malaysia.

“It was, after all, our first game since the All-Stars plus it’s a new environment. But once they got used to the conditions here, they became what we want them to be – a fast-breaking team with hustling defense. They just pushed themselves."

Meanwhile, PBA commissioner Renauld 'Sonny' Barrios arrived from Manila in time for the second half of the RP-Indonesia game, joining the Nationals at the locker room and taking a seat beside team manager JB Baylon.

Scores:

POWERADE-RP 103 – Yap 21, Santos 18, Miller 12, Norwood 11, Taulava 10, Baguio 8, Raymundo 8, Dillinger 7, Pennisi 5, De Ocampo 3.

INDONESIA 64 – Sumargo 11, Suro 10, Wuysang 9, Poedjakusuma 9, Agustinus 9, Sudiadnyana 6, Wibawa 5, Sigar 2, Thoyib 2, Purwanto 1, Fitzgerald 0, Budianto 0.

Quarters: 20-14, 46-25, 75-45, 103-64