Fully-charged Oguchi electrifies Bolts' win vs Llamados

Chamberlain Oguchi found his range just in time to pull Meralco out of a 10-point deficit late in the game in the Bolts' 89-86 come-from-behind win over the hard-luck B-Meg Derby Ace Llamados Friday night in the PBA Commissioner's Cup. Oguchi waxed hot from downtown, firing four treys in the fourth quarter, including the go-ahead basket for an 87-86 count with 26 seconds left to cap a closing 14-3 Meralco run. With no timeouts left, the Llamados made a hurried shot at the other end that resulted in a Kerby Raymundo miss. Mark Cardona grabbed the rebound and converted it into two free throws to seal the outcome of the highly emotional and physical match. In a big follow-up to his 43-point explosion right on his debut game, Oguchi finished with a game-high 29 points on a remarkable 7-of-14 shooting from beyond the arc. He also grabbed 10 rebounds. In the two games that he played with the Bolts so far, the deadly American import has shot 15 of 31 from beyond the arc. "The game got a little cheap, got a little physical, but we stayed focused," said Oguchi, who saluted the Meralco gallery at the Astrodome shortly after the team finally notched its first win in the tournament after losing its first four outings. "We're just a bunch of loose players who will keep on battling and battling no matter what the odds are," added the Meralco import. Asi Taulava banged his way inside for 15 points, while Sol Mercado and Cardona added 13 each. Peter June Simon had 17 points to lead the scoring for the Llamados, who played minus top gunner James Yap who had a strained calf muscle. Derby Ace's fourth loss in six assignments was a tough pill to swallow after the Llamados appeared to have gained control of the tightly-fought contest midway in the fourth when KG Canaleta exploded for 10 straight points – including a rare four-point play – to give the team a 77-68 lead. Two free throws by import Shamar Spears gave the Llamados a 10-point lead with four minutes to go. Then Oguchi suddenly took over the game. His three-pointer in the 3:04 mark ignited a string of four straight treys by the Bolts. The third of those booming triples – courtesy of Oguchi – tied the contest at 84-84 with 1:21 left to play. Spears then barreled his way inside to put the Llamados on top for the last time, 86-84, before Oguchi put the finishing touches with his amazing three-point shooting. The Llamados had one more chance for a game-tying basket, but Roger Yap's desperation three-point attempt in the final two seconds bounced hard off the rim. Canaleta, who finished with 12 points, engaged Chris Ross in a shoving incident midway in the fourth period. Both were assessed technical fouls. Ross was later ejected for incurring a second technical foul for a similar infraction against Roger Yap. Mark Isip also had an exchange of heated words with Spears, as did Derby Ace coach Jorge Gallent and Cardona, just before the Meralco guard was about to take the game-clinching free throws in the final 3.9 seconds. - JVP, KY, GMA News