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    Nullified Ginebra-TNT game was Alapag's coming-out party, says Menk

    This 2003 Ginebra-TNT game may have been nullified, but at least it put then-rookie Alapag on the PBA map, says pal Menk
    Apr 26, 2020

    ERIC Menk acknowledged that Asi Taulava's tip-in should have been counted in the nullified Ginebra vs TNT game back in the 2003 PBA All-Filipino Conference.

    'Major Pain' declined to issue any comments on the matter when Spin.ph reached out to him to get his side on "the best game that never was," but an old interview done in 2016 bared how Menk felt about the situation.

    In an interview with SportsIQ, Menk did admit that the game shouldn't have gone into overtime had replays been enforced in that said game.

    "It was really close and it was before instant replay. With the fans in Araneta [Coliseum], the officials didn't watch the replay. The shot should have been counted and they didn't count it," he said.

    With the game tied at 110, Jimmy Alapag threw the ball in desperation before Taulava caught it and tipped it in. Replays of that game did show that Taulava no longer had the ball in his hands at 0.1 seconds. The officials, however, waived the basket off and the game proceeded to a second overtime, which ended with Ginebra winning, 122-117.

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    That was the main bone of contention for a Talk 'N Text protest that was later upheld by then commissioner Noli Eala, leading to the two teams replaying the game.

    Menk, who had 45 points and 18 rebounds in the match, did say that he was bummed with the decision and was partly the reason for his subpar performance in the replay a month later.

    "I had 45 and 18, so right away, when there was a protest and I found out they're gonna replay it, I thought there’s no way I’m gonna have 45 and 18 again. That’s not gonna happen," he said.

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    "That was a big win for us. We beat Talk 'N Text and they were a super strong team. They went on to win the championship that conference. We beat them, the next thing you know, we gotta replay the whole game over again, which I never heard of in any league.

    "I was upset. We went on and lost to them. I was upset on multiple levels. The win goes to a loss, the 45 and 18 erased from the record books, and that tied my career-high at the time. And the fact that the odds were I'm not gonna be able to do that again a couple of days later.

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    "Talk 'N Text was really good and the odds of us beating them two in a row was gonna be tough. I didn't have a great attitude going to the game and it probably contributed to our loss."

    Menk only had 13 points in the replay where the Phone Pals got the better of the Gin Kings, 90-87.

    But despite the game being erased from the record books, Menk believes that it was the game where Alapag, then a rookie, introduced himself to the public.

    "It was a back-and-forth game. Jimmy was on fire and we couldn't stop Jimmy and everyone was wondering who is this guy? We didn’t really know him," he said of Alapag, who carried the torch for Talk 'N Text with 40 points and 14 assists.

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    "That time, people were still figuring out who this guy is. It was a wild game. I rewatched the whole thing and that game really put Jimmy on the map."

    Years later, the two did work side-by-side as Alapag was named as the head coach of San Miguel Alab Pilipinas in the ASEAN Basketball League (ABL), with Menk on his staff.

    Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph

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