(UPDATED) 2010-11 PBA: SMB subdues Ginebra in 2OT, Castro fuels TNT's Game 5 win

The San Miguel Beermen needed two extra sessions to snatch away a Game 4 victory from the Barangay Ginebra Kings, and Jay Washington delivered.

The Beermen garnered a 108-104 victory from the Kings in the 2010-11 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Philippine Cup best-of-seven semi-finals on Wednesday night at the Araneta Coliseum.

Washington played a pivotal role, scoring 19 points and grabbing a career-high 20 rebounds, helping the Beermen move one game closer to an appearance in the coveted Philippine Cup finals. Guard Alex Cabagnot added 17 points, while Danny Seigle poured in 15 to help secure the win.

The Gin Kings missed four out of six foul shots in the span of the last two minutes, easily losing a nine-point lead at the end of regulation. Dondon Hontiveros and Alex Cabagnot connected on crucial baskets to send the game into an extra session, 94-94 after 48 minutes of play.

The opportunity to tie the seried dimmed slightly for Barangay Ginebra, as Caguioa committed his valedictory foul on a Danny Ildefonso three-point play conversion to give them the a slim 99-97 advantage with 3:10 remaining in the first extra session.

It took nearly two minutes for Willie Miller to respond, hitting a tough jumper to knot the game at 99 with 1:47 on the clock, forcing coach Ato Agustin to call for time.

Both teams clamped up on defense, not allowing baskets on either side of the court. However, Arwind Santos committed a costly foul for his 5th in the ballgame with 1:05 remaining in the extension, giving Jayjay Helterbrand a golden opportunity to help the "never-say-die" squad the lead.

But it was not to be. The other half of "The Fast and The Furious" backcourt duo bricked both freebies to keep the game even at 99.

Ginebra had multiple attempts at the basket, bricking from point-blank range and beyond the arc in the dying seconds of the extra session. Then, Ronald Tubid made what was the game's turning point: a mental lapse via a travelling violation, giving the Beermen a last crack to end the game.

But in the insuing play, Ildefonso's last crack from the left wing off a great feed from Cabagnot rimmed out to extend the match for five more minutes.

Fatigue creeped in for both squads, with neither team having enough legs to move around the court. San Miguel, however, got off to a hot 7-0 start to the second extra session and never looked back.

Ginebra, on the other hand, had open looks but failed miserably to open the lid that covered their basket until the last two minutes on a deep three by Miller.

Rudy Hatfield, who finished with 2 points and 17 rebounds, kept the Jong Uichico-mentored squad afloat with his energy off the boards. He shot a horrible 1-for-10 from the field, majority of which was from point-blank range.

Fittingly, it was the veteran Olsen Racela who sealed the victory with 12.4 ticks on the clock by hitting a pair of clutch free throws. The 40 year old guard, who finished with 8 points in the contest, is set to retire after the team's campaign in the Philippine Cup.

Ronald Tubid finished with an impressive 28 points, while Enrico Villanueva had 19 points and 11 rebounds to his name in the loss.

Castro, bench mob gives Texters 3-2 series edge

In other semi-finals action, Jason Castro sparked a bench rally with 22 points and 8 rebounds to aid the Talk 'N Text Tropang Texters in gaining a 97-83 conquest of B-Meg Derby Ace Llamados to continue their quest to regain the Philippine Cup trophy.

Other major bench scorers included Ali Peek (16 pts.), Larry Fonacier (13 pts.), and Ranidel de Ocampo (13 pts.) to constitute 64 of the 68 bench points by the Tropang Texters that was key in giving them the all-important Game 5 conquest.

James Yap had 24 points, while Jonas Villanueva added 15 in a losing cause for B-Meg Derby Ace.

Both Talk 'N Text and San Miguel Beer seek to enter the finals outright with respective wins on Friday. Tipoff for the first game between Talk 'N Text and B-Meg Derby Ace will be at 5pm, while the do-or-die contest for Barangay Ginebra against San Miguel Beer follows after.

UPCOMING GAMES
January 14, 2011 (Friday) - Araneta Coliseum
5:00pm - Talk 'N Text vs. B-Meg Derby Ace (Game 6 - TNT leads series, 3-2)
7:30pm - Barangay Ginebra vs. San Miguel (Game 5 - SMB leads series, 3-1)

BOX SCORES
First game
SAN MIGUEL 108 - Washington 19, Cabagnot 17, Seigle 15, Ildefonso 13, Hontiveros 12, Santos 11, Racela 8, Pena 6, Artadi 4, Salvacion 3, Yeo 0
GINEBRA 104 - Tubid 28, Villanueva 19, Miller 14, Caguioa 9, Menk 9, Helterbrand 8, Intal 7, Wilson 5, Cortez 3, Hatfield 2
Quarters: 25-26, 48-43, 71-78, 94-94, 99-99 (OT), 108-104 (2OT)

Second game
TALK 'N TEXT 97 - Castro 22, Peek 16, Fonacier 13, De Ocampo 13, Reyes 10, Carey 9, Alapag 8, Dillinger 2, Aban 2, Alvarez 2, Williams 0
B-MEG DERBY ACE 83 - J. Yap 24, Villanueva 15, Simon 13, Canaleta 12, Pingris 8, Gaco 3, Timberlake 2, Maierhofer 2, Salvador 2, R. Yap 2, Allado 0
Quarters: 20-31, 51-48, 73-69, 97-83