Game 119: Crispa 109, Toyota 102 (April 12, 1983)

Crispa avenged its elimination round loss to Toyota by winning the single-round semifinal opener of the 1983 PBA All-Filipino Conference.

Crispa wins

By Tito S. Talao

Tempo

Published Wednesday April 13, 1983

Crispa got back at Toyota, 109-102, and Gilbey’s Gin jolted Great Taste, 115-108, as the semifinals of the PBA All-Filipino Conference got underway last night at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Redmanizers, aching to avenge their 86-84 loss to the Silver Coronas in the eliminations, broke away from a close, pulsating match in the fourth quarter to surge to a commanding 93-80 lead which they protected till the final buzzer.

The Discoverers rode on the combined 63 points production of Gary Vargas and Steve Watson to stop title pretender Great Taste, 115-108, in a result that surprised some 20,000 spectators who filled the rafters of the Big Dome.

So heartbreaking was the loss that the embattled GTD coach Jimmy Mariano hurriedly left the coliseum after a closed-door huddle with his boys.

Thus, Crispa and Gilbey’s gain an early headway in the tight scramble for two final slots to be disputed in a single round-robin series.

Fortunato Co, who scored only four points in the first half, banged in back-to-back triples to set off Crispa’s breakaway midway through the final period.

The Coronas got a big blow when their top gunner Ramon Fernandez fouled out with still 7:03 remaining. Philip Cezar celebrated this by scoring nine of Crispa’s last 16 points.

The Discoverers dominated the first two quarters of play, opening up with a 16-4 lead in the first two quarters.

But as the match wore on, Vargas and Watson, who drilled in 22 and 31 points, respectively, caught fire, helping the Gins get back into the game.

The individual scores:

Crispa (109) — Guidaben 32, Cezar 26, Co 22, Fabiosa 10, Villamin 8, Cristobal 5, Israel 4, Hubalde 2, Mamaril 0, Cruz 0, Esguerra 0.

Toyota (102) — Tuadles 28, Fernandez 24, Arnaiz 19, King 18, Loyzaga 8, Legaspi 4, Jaworski 2, Relosa 0, Bulaong 0, Herrera 0.

Quarterscores: 24-22, 49-48, 78-74, 109-102.