PBA Friday: Will Llamados' gamble pay off vs Painters?

Drastic times call for drastic measures. Its season on the line, Derby Ace decided to gamble of bringing in a new import going to the all-important Game 4 of its PBA Fiesta Cup quarterfinals against Rain or Shine Friday at the Astrodome. The Llamados put Clif Brown on the injured list and inserted Tony Washam, an athletic small forward, who has been a proven scorer. Washam makes his league debut in the 7:30 p.m. match, coming over just as the Llamados are still reeling from back-to-back losses to trail in the best-of-five series, 2 games to 1. A product of St. Vincent College in the U.S., the 28-year old Washam is fresh from suiting up in the Israel National League where he steered the Elitzur Maccabi Netanya to the semifinals. Washam averaged 30.1 points a game during the playoffs and 18.7 points in the eliminations. His scoring ability will definitely be a big lift to the embattled Llamados, who are again expected to miss the services of key players Kerby Raymundoand Marc Pingris. “Ping and Kerby approached me after the game (Game Three) and expressed their willingness to play despite their conditions," related coach Ryan Gregorio. “But I told them that I will never risk their future by playing them knowing that they are hurt. “But that kind of gesture is what separates our team from the rest." The 6-foot-6 Raymundo is out with an injury in his pelvis, while a slight tear on Pingris’ left thigh muscle has been discovered during an MRI procedure. But even without the two, the Llamados had the Elasto Painters on the ropes in Game 3 Wednesday when they fought back from an 18-point deficit, wiped out a 53-46 gap at the half with a rare 18-0 run starting the third, and led by as many as 13 points (68-55). Unfortunately, they failed to get the job done as rookie Jervy Cruz and Sol Mercado rose to the occasion for the Elasto Painters. Cruz forced the overtime by connecting on a turnaround shot with five seconds left in regulation, while Mercado finished off the Llamados with nine points in the extra period for the 117-111 win. Mercado came a rebound short of a triple double with 16 points, nine rebounds and a career-high 15 assists. The win moved Rain or Shine a victory away from becoming only the third team to advance to the semifinals after having to go through the wild card. The two other squads which went through the same process were Shell and San Miguel Beer. Gregorio though, is not about to throw in the white towel. “If there’s a team capable of launching a comeback, it is us," said Gregorio. “In 2002 (Finals, Governors’ Cup), we were down 0-2, we won. In 2006, we were down 1-3 semifinals Philippine Cup), we won. And in 2010, nobody gave us a chance, we won (versus Alaska Philippine Cup Finals). We may be hurting physically, but our hearts are not broken." It's do or-die for Kings, Aces Barangay Ginebra is also embracing that same positive attitude of the Llamados. Given a new lease on life, Kings coach Jong Uichico is embracing for the Aces to come in their A-form in Game 4 of their own quarterfinal series at 5 p.m. Behind the 20-point production of JC Intal, the league’s crowd favorite staved off outright elimination by salvaging Game 3, 91-87, to cut off Alaska’s series lead, 2-1. “They’ll (Aces) make their adjustments," said Uichico. “Of course, If I were them, I don’t want to have a game on Sunday (Game Five), so I will have to go all out on Friday. The do-or-die match is really on Friday." - RCJ, GMANews.TV