Tenorio saves best for last as Alaska escapes Barangay Ginebra

Alaska’s clutch player L.A. Tenorio came to the rescue anew. On Sunday, the cerebral point guard saved the Aces from the brink of defeat, hitting the go-ahead three-pointer in the final 3.4 seconds and coming away with a big stop at the other end to steer Alaska to a tense 95-94 win in the main game of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Astrodome. The Aces, who squandered a 26-point, second quarter lead, appeared on the threshold of a huge endgame collapse after the rejuvenated Kings wiped away a five-point deficit to take a 94-92 lead with 25.5 seconds left on a fastbreak lay-up by Willie Miller. But Tenorio kept himself composed. He nailed a three-pointer from the left quartercourt against the outstretched arms of former Ateneo teammate Enrico Villanueva to restore the lead to the Aces, 95-94. Tenorio capped his endgame brilliance with a steal off Ginebra import Nate Brumfield, allowing the Aces to escape with the win to join Rain or Shine in the early lead of the import-laced conference. “Actually, it was a broken play. But I had to take it dahil nag-switch sila sa defense," said Tenorio of his game-winning shot that gave him 18 points for the night. Import L.D. Williams paced the Aces with 25 points, 17 of them in the first half when Alaska took command, 37-15, a lead which eventually ballooned to as high as 26. But behind its phalanx of shooting guards led by Miller, Tubid and Caguioa, plus some inside plays courtesy of Brumfield, Ginebra cut the deficit to a manageable level, 44-53, at the break. “Yun ang pinag-usapan namin during halftime. It always happens to us when we have a big lead," said Tenorio, recalling the same incident against Ginebra during the deciding Game 5 of their Philippine Cup quarterfinals last year when they lost after leading by as much as 20 in the first half. “Lesson learned para sa amin `yun," added Tenorio, who has bailed the Aces out of danger many times in past games. For a while, it appeared Alaska was again bound to suffer the same fate when Ginebra erased an 87-92 deficit in the final two minutes by scoring seven unanswered points — including a completed Mike Cortez three-point play — to wrest the upper hand, 94-92. Good thing Tenorio was there to save the day for the Aces. “Every single day, we always remind ourselves of that loss to Ginebra," said the former Ateneo playmaker. “Masarap at masaya itong panalo namin against Ginebra, pero mahaba pa ang tournament." Brumfield topscored with 24 points for the Kings, who fell to 1-1. - KY, RCJ, GMA News