ARIGO HELPS TIGERS CLIMB BACK FROM 19-POINT HOLE

Belasco meltdown, Devance injury take toll in endgame for Welcoat
Philippine Basketball Association website
Friday, 19 October 2007

The much-awaited pro debut of Joe Devance met disaster even before he warmed up, forcing Welcoat Dragons coach Leo Austria to confine his prize rookie to the bench and helplessly watch the Coca-Cola Tigers devour on his hapless teammates.

John Arigo hugged the spotlight in the absence of Devance, the No. 1 pick in this year's Draft, scoring 26 points to anchor the Tigers' 85-76 come-from-behind plastering of the Dragons in the Smart PBA Philippine Cup Friday night at the Cuneta Astrodome.

Arigo was the source of inspiration for the Tigers all night. Even when things didn't look good in the first half, the veteran Fil-Am guard kept his teammates together by getting them involved on every play and encouraging them to keep on fighting.

His leadership worked like magic as the Tigers clawed back from a 19-point deficit in the second quarter and eventually seized control in the third with Arigo leading the charge and Mark Telan, who finished with a double-double of 12 points and 14 rebounds, and Ronjay Enrile, who tallied eight points, providing key support.

"Part of the challenge for us coming into the game was how our backcourt will perform without Alex (Cabagnot). I thought Ronjay (Enrile) and Egay (Echavez) did pretty well," said Coca-Cola coach Binky Favis.

Favis said Cabagnot, who was hurting with a right ankle sprain, was willing to play but he decided to rest his starting playmaker "because his health is our priority."

Favis also commended his big men for manning the fort well against the much taller Welcoat frontliners.

"Overall, I thought the key was John Arigo keeping the team together with his leadership. He showed the way for everybody all night long," Favis said.

Rookie Ronjay Buenafe scored the most points by a rookie so far in the conference, tallying 16 points for the Tigers, who shot 41 percent from the field and mugged the Dragons off the boards, 61-48, to cushion the impact of their 25 turnovers.

The 6-foot-7 Devance, who showed a lot of promise during the preseason, barely saw action has he went into the game with a right ankle sprain which he suffered in practice a day earlier. He tried to play in the second quarter but he was limping in pain prompting Austria to sit him out for good. The Hawaiian-born University of El Paso-Texas product, who traces his roots to Escalante City in Negros Oriental, played in just four minutes and finished with just three points – a wide-open triple in the second period – and an assist.

The absence of Devance, who arrived and left the venue in crutches, proved costly for the Dragons who controlled the first half with Nic Belasco and Jay-R Reyes providing the damage.

Welcoats seemed to have the game well under control even without Devance, as Belasco nailed 4-of-6 3-pointer for 16 points and Reyes scored 10 as the Dragons posted the game's biggest lead at 41-22 on Belasco's basket with 3:51 left in the second quarter.

But the Tigers refused to quit and managed to slow down the Dragons with their defense and cut Welcoat's lead to just 43-37 at halftime.

With momentum working on Coke's side, the Tigers kept the heat in the third and the Dragon's started to fade as their shooting went awry.

A basket by Buenafe and two free throws by Arigo put the Tigers' ahead to stay at 58-55 late in the third canto which saw the Dragons shooting just 21 percent (4-of-19) from the field.

Belasco showed the way for the Welcoat with 22 points but scored just six points in the second half on a 4-of-14 shooting, inclusive of a 0-for-8 stint from beyond the arc. (DBC)

The scores:
Coca-Cola 85 – Arigo 26, Buenafe 16, Telan 12, Enrile 8, Peek 8, Calimag 7, Tolomia 5, Isip 2, Echavez 1, Misolas 0, Duremdes 0.
Welcoat 76 – Belasco 22, Reyes 14, Ibanes 8, Arana 6, Lopez 5, Baguion 4, Gelig 4, Wainwright 4, Devance 3, Sta. Maria 3, Mente 3.
Quarterscores: 20-23, 37-43, 60-57, 85-76