MANILA — The underdog Kia Carnival slew yet another giant as the Manny Pacquiao-led team came from 17 points down to topple the Talk N Text Tropang Texters, 106-103, Wednesday night in the PBA Commissioner's Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. Kia has beaten two other top teams – new Philippine Cup champions San Miguel Beermen and defending champion Purefoods Star Hotshots. The three teams Kia defeated have won a combined 39 championships. Wednesday night's victory was the first back-to-back win for Kia. The Carnival, now with a 3-4 win-loss card, is gunning for a third straight and fourth win overall when it goes up against fellow expansion club Blackwater Elite Saturday. Kia credited the exceptionally fiery performance of unheralded guard Hyram Bagatsing and the dominating presence of 7'3” import Peter John Ramos for the win. Bagatsing, a virtual unknown who went undrafted in the 2010 PBA rookie draft, drilled six-of-seven three-point shots. His sixth and final three-pointer gave Kia the lead for good at 98-96, heading into the last two minutes. Ramos showed all-around brilliance, falling just one assist short of posting a triple-double as he finished with 24 points, 25 rebounds and nine assists. However, he committed 10 turnovers. Four other Carnival players scored in double digits with Leo Avenido posting 16 points, while Kyle Pascual, Reil Cervantes and JR Buensuceso finished with 10 each. The Carnival erected a seven-point lead with 1:13 left after a three-pointer by Avenido and a basket by Ramos. Its pride pricked, the Texters pushed themselves to the limit to try and steal the game. They managed to cut the Kia lead to three, 106-103, and had a chance to extend the game into overtime but Ranidel de Ocampo's three-point shot at the top of the key with three seconds left was off the mark, allowing the Carnival to complete the victory. Pacquiao played for six-and-a-half minutes but failed to score. The eight-time world boxing champion is all set to leave for the US later this week to begin his training ahead of the May 2 megafight against undefeated US boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. Talk N Text suffered just its second loss in seven games as it slipped to solo second place in the standings half a game behind league-leader Meralco (5-1). Jayson Castro led the Texters with 24 points, while import Ivan Johnson finished with 21 points and 12 rebounds. Larry Fonacier chipped in with 13 markers while Matt Ganuelas-Rosser and Aaron Aban posted 12 points each. De Ocampo added 11 points. Ginebra 89, Blackwater 82 Thanks to the late-game heroics of LA Tenorio, the Barangay Ginebra Kings survived a ferocious assault by the Blackwater Elite, winning 89-82, to improve to a 4-3 mark, good for a tie from fifth to seventh place with idle Purefoods and GlobalPort. Tenorio scored 12 of his 17 points in the final period, drilling the first nine points for Ginebra in the fourth quarter of the game as the Blackwater Elite put up a gallant fight. Michael Dunigan and center Greg Slaughter once again showed their dominant form with the prized import leading his team with 27 points and 16 rebounds. Slaughter finished with 17 points and 14 boards. Blackwater suffered its sixth loss in seven games and dropped to the bottom of the standings. Games Friday: Barako Bull Energy vs. Rain or Shine; Meralco Bolts vs. NLEX Road Warriors.
