Crispa closed in on a berth in the 1977 PBA First Conference Finals after defeating Toyota in the first of two meetings in the double-round semifinals. The win kept the Redmanizers unbeaten against the Tamaraws since the start of the season.
Redmanizers win, 110-107
Bulletin Today
Published Friday July 8, 1977
Crispa outsteadied Toyota last night, 110-107, in a game that had all the trimmings of a championship match to virtually nail down the first finals berth in the Philippine Basketball Association first conference at the Araneta Coliseum.
An interception by Bernard Fabiosa and a miss by Francis Arnaiz in the dying seconds preserved the Redmanizers’ victory, their third straight over the Tamaraws this season.
Fabiosa’s interception of a Robert Jaworski throw-in with the Redmanizers ahead, 109-107, and in the ensuing play, Fortunato Co was fouled by Jaworski with 15 seconds to go.
The usually accurate Co missed both charities and the Tamaraws got the rebound, but Arnaiz muffed his drive that could have tied the score and Fabiosa was fouled in the next play. The Crispa sentinel made good his second free throw to peg the score at 110-107.
The win, which gave Crispa a 25-21 edge over Toyota in their head-to-head duel in three PBA seasons, was also Crispa’s third straight in the semifinal round, moving Baby Dalupan’s boys to within a game of qualifying for the best-of-five championship series.
Toyota’s loss threw the race for the other finals berth wide open among Toyota, Mariwasa and Tanduay, which are tied for second place with identical 1-2 cards.
The Honda Panthers paved the way for the triple tie when they routed the Distillers in the first game, 121-106, behind the solid performance of big Billy Robinson.
With Robinson sparking the Honda Panthers, Mariwasa surged to a commanding 25-6 lead in the first six minutes from which the favored Distillers never recovered.
Robinson scored a game-high 34 points, blocked two shots, had 11 assists, five screens and three loose ball recoveries. He pulled down down 17 rebounds, 13 defensive and four offensive.
The Redmanizers, beaten only once this season (by Mariwasa), nearly squandered a six-point lead in the last two minutes.
At 105-99, the Tamaraws clustered six points, four of them by Jess Sta. Maria, to level the count at 105-all. Ramon Fernandez, who topscored for Toyota with 29 points, scored the tying goal following a steal.
Alfredo Hubalde, who also shot 29 points, gave the lead back to Crispa with a driving layup but Arnaiz knotted the score anew, 107-all, with a similar drive, 31 ticks left.
Philip Cezar scored unmolested in the next play and then the Tamaraws missed a chance to equalize when Jaworski’s in-bound pass was intercepted by Fabiosa.
“The breaks went against us in the closing seconds,” said Toyota coach Dante Silverio after the game.
“We’re still very much in the race and we’ll try hard to be in the finals,” he added.
Tanduay, on hits by Alberto Gutierrez and Valerio de los Santos, managed to trim the lead to 14 points at the end of the first period, 39-25, but the Honda Panthers struck back to pad the lead to 24 points three times, the last at 70-46.
Adriano Papa, Jr. and Lucrecio Dacula complimented Robinson with 19 points each. Jesse Sullano scored 13 points and Ramon Lucindo added 10.
The scores:
Crispa — 110
Hubalde 29
P. Cezar 14
Co 12
Varela 11
Guidaben 11
Soriano 10
Fabiosa 9
Pages 6
Torres 4
Dionisio 2
Dionisio 2
Calilan 2
Toyota — 107
Fernandez 29
Jaworski 17
Legaspi 14
Arnaiz 14
Sta. Maria 11
King 8
Javier 6
Bulaong 4
Acuna 4
Bauzon 0
Crispa. 29 26 24 31 — 110
Toyota. 21 31 25 30 — 107
Refs: E. Cruz, R. Bartolome, T. de los Reyes
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