MANILA — Bull-strong import Allen Durham drew raves for a second night as he lifted the Barako Bull Energy to a huge 88-74 upset of erstwhile solo leader Talk N Text Tropang Texters Tuesday night in the PBA Governor's Cup at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum. In just his second game in the PBA, Durham was unstoppable once again, pouring in 28 points and 29 rebounds and two blocks, powering the Energy to their second straight win to improve to a 3-5 win-loss card with only one game left in their elimination round schedule. In his first game against GlobalPort, Durham dished out 34 points, 24 rebounds, and 10 assists. At solo eighth in the standings, Barako Bull is now assured of a playoff spot even if it loses its last elimination round game against the Alaska Aces Sunday. At worst, the Energy could wind up at eighth place, having defeated ninth placer Meralco Bolts (2-6) and 10th placer GobalPort (1-6). The stunning defeat ended Talk N Text's four-game winning streak. The Texters (5-2) are now tied for the first two spots with the San Mig Super Coffee Mixers. The two teams will break the tie when they go up against each other Friday. With Durham making mincemeat of TNT defenders, Barako Bull shot a respectable 33-of-78 (42.3 percent) from the field while limiting Talk N Text to 24-of-74 (32.4 percent). The Energy also controlled the boards, 59-41, including 18-10 offensive, resulting in a 14 second-chance points. Durham shattered the game's last deadlock with a picture-perfect jumphook, giving Barako Bull a 70-68 lead. The Energy then went on a 15-6 tear to take a commanding 83-74 lead with 1:45 remaining. Keith Jensen and Willie Miller added 17 and 15 points, respectively, for Barako Bull while Jeric Fortuna added 11 points on 3-of-5 shooting from the three-point line on top of six rebounds. Import Paul Harris paced the Texters with 22 points, 14 rebounds and four assists. Ranidel De Ocampo collected 21 points and seven rebounds, while Jayson Castro finished with 18 points and four assists. Rain or Shine 104, Meralco 85 The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters rolled to their fourth straight victory, shutting down the Meralco Bolts, 104-85. Improving to a 5-3 card with one game left, the Painters are in a position to grab one of the top four slots in the playoffs which carry a twice-to-beat advantage. They are currently in solo fourth place in the standings. The Painters will wrap up their elimination round slate Monday against the San Mig Super Coffee Mixers. The loss dropped Meralco to 2-6, sending the Bolts to the brink of elimination. After a slow start which saw them trail the Bolts by 11 points in the first half, the Painters went on a 15-4 run in the third quarter for a 63-50 lead as they began pulling away. Import Mario West then led a Meralco counter-strike to trim the deficit to just four points, 67-63, before the end of the third quarter. But ROS rookies Raymond Almazan and Alex Nuyles combined for a 9-0 blast in the middle of the second half as Rain or Shine regained a double-digit spread, 76-63. The Texters coasted to victory as the Bolts failed to mount another rally. Import Arizona Reid led ROS with 25 points and 15 rebounds. Almazan and Gabe Norwood chipped in with 12 points apiece. West was the main man for Meralco with 29 points. Cliff Hodge added 17 while the fit-again Mike Cortez had 10 markers. Games Wednesday: GlobalPort Batang Pier vs. Air21 Express; and Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings vs. San Miguel Beermen.
