Robert Jaworski came with key plays on both ends down the stretch to help Toyota force a deciding fifth game in their 1979 PBA All-Filipino championship series with Crispa.
Toyota beats Crispa, evens series
By Ding Marcelo
Bulletin Today
Published Friday July 6, 1979
Toyota came off with a consummate endgame brilliance last night to escape with a heart-stopping 113-110 triumph that derailed Crispa’s championship drive and elevated the PBA All-Filipino Conference titular series to its fifth and deciding game tomorrow at the Araneta Coliseum.
Foul riddled and their backs to the wall, the Tamaraws produced an awesome performance that makes tomorrow’s championship open to great expectations.
Robert Jaworski nursed five fouls midway in the third quarter, but he delivered the tie-breaking basket on his own interception while Abe King and Francis Arnaiz combined for three points in a 7-0 blast in the last two minutes for a winning 113-108 Tamaraw lead.
It was a sorry loss for the Redmanizers, who could have stashed away the championship with a victory last night after taking a 2-1 lead in their best-of-five series.
And they indeed appeared well in their way to ending a year-long championship drought when they stormed ahead, 108-106, on eight straight points by Alfredo Hubalde that wiped out Toyota’s 106-104 advantage going into the last four minutes.
But luck, which went Crispa’s way in the dying seconds of the third game, was nowhere in sight as the Redmanizers missed four attempts, excluding a pair of foul throws by Fortunato Co, Jr., who obviously lost his fire after seating on the bench with five fouls starting the final period.
Toyota Coach Fortunato Acuna was practically speechless from the sheer joy of winning a drama-packed encounter that levelled the series at two games apiece.
“It’s going to be even on Saturday,” he said, adding that the performance of his team was “terrific.”
His team had survived one of its toughest tests and one could only admire the resiliency of the Tamaraws who had lost ace center Ramon Fernandez on fouls with 2:55 left and the game still on the line, and watched in horror as Jaworski pick up his fifth foul in the third period.
The Redmanizers themselves were showered with fouls and at one point, all five Crispa players on the court had five fouls each as referees Willie Mateo, Jun Ramos and Gene Asuncion, who were virtually handpicked by Games and Amusements Board Chairman Luis Tabuena, called a total of 70 fouls, 38 against Crispa.
These fouls ultimately reflected half of the story as Toyota made good 23 of 30 foul throw attempts while Crispa made only 14 out of 27 tries.
The three referees — all of them renewly recruited from the amateur ranks — had some bad calls, but somehow made up for it by the stern authority with which they exercised their functions.
As usual, fans littered the court with debris to show their displeasure at some calls, especially charging fouls which could have gone either way.
Acuna, who lambasted the officiating in the third game Tuesday night, said he was satisfied with the officiating of the three rookie referees.
Acuna said Nicanor Bulaong’s block of Atoy Co in the homestretch was the turning point of the match as it gave the Tamaraws possession and led to Arnulfo Tuadles’ tying basket, 108-all, that ignited Toyota’s 7-0 windup/
But for most fans, it was Jaworski’s interception of Hubalde’s pass to Co and his scoring in the succeeding play, 110-108, that broke the backs of the Redmanizers.
Jaworski’s basket shattered the last of eight ties for the evening and gave back Toyota the lead. The score changed hands 17 times, attesting in the epic struggle fo the evening.
It was a brilliant finish for Jaworski, who could only manage only eight points prior to his vital basket. He had remained in the background as Fernandez, Arnaiz, Tuadles and King sparkled for the Tams and combined for 91 points, with Fernandez topscoring with 27.
Crispa badly missed Bernard Fabiosa who had drawn a three-game suspension from the GAB following a punching incident in the third game.
In the first game, Filmanbank likewise squared the series for third game at two games apiece by beating Tanduay, 108-90.
The scores:
Toyota — 113
Fernandez 27
Tuadles 23
Arnaiz 21
King 20
Jaworski 10
Estrada 6
Bulaong 4
Legaspi 2
Salazar 0
Crispa — 110
Co 31
Hubalde 30
Cezar 24
Guidaben 14
Dionisio 7
De la Cruz 2
Varela 1
Adornado 1
Gulfin 0
Javier 0
Quarterscores: 27-22, 61-57, 91-85, 113-110
Toyota 27 34 30 22 — 113
Crispa 22 35 28 25 — 110
Refs: W. Mateo, F. Ramos, Jr., G. Asuncion
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