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“They always bring great discipline, as well as defensive intensity to their game,” said Cone on Tuesday as they prepare for a grudge rematch with the Realtors this Wednesday in the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.





Like in their previous games, experts predict another emotional encounter, if not a bruising one when they clash in the featured match at 4 p.m.


The Aces, for one, are out to extend their four-game winning run in the season-ending tournament.


The Realtors, on the other hand, are determined to improve their 3-1 card. If they win, they will grab a piece of the lead with the Aces. San Miguel Beer (2-2) meets winless Rain or Shine (0-4) in the curtain raiser at 5 p.m.


Of the Aces’ four wins, two were against pre-season top contenders, beating the Beermen in Panabo City, 85-74, and the Barangay Ginebra Kings, 105-92, last October 25.


However, they will be up against the Realtors who are coming off a 101-93 victory over the Burger King Whoppers last Friday, that made up for their 83-100 setback to defending champion Talk ’N Text.


Cone said much of the early success of Sta. Lucia should be credited to the motivating power of coach Boyet Bautista – who was one of the tough guards during his time in the league.


Also, Cone said that the trades SLR made in the off-season by acquiring Gabby Espinas, Chris Pacana, as well as comebacking Ardy Larong and rookie Josh Urbiztondo, who scored a career-best 24 points against BK, has helped SLR with its running game.


“They have more quickness for this year, which we’ll have to overcome,” he said.


Like Cone, Fernandez sees a tough battle with the Aces, saying: “We need to bring our A-game.”


“Alaska beat us in a tune-up game, so we know what they can do. We have to stay disciplined in our execution and have a solid defensive game if we want to get our fourth win,” he added.

They’ll look to change their fortunes Monday night, when they try to snap a three-game home losing streak to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Drafting Oklahoma forward Blake Griffin(notes) with the first selection in the draft was supposed to help turn around the fortunes of a Clippers franchise that’s been to the playoffs four times since 1976. After the team confirmed a stress fracture in Griffin’s left kneecap last Monday, though, Los Angeles opened the 2009-10 campaign with last season’s consensus college player of the year sidelined up to six weeks.

“He could play on it, but it won’t get better,” Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy said. “Once that became apparent, there was no question: Let’s shut it down. Him playing at a lesser level isn’t going to do us much good.”

Without Griffin, the Clippers find themselves where they were last season: 0-4.

Los Angeles snapped its six-game slide to open 2008-09 with a victory over Dallas, but the Clippers couldn’t repeat that effort this season, falling to the Mavericks 93-84 on Saturday.

Center Chris Kaman(notes) grabbed 11 rebounds and scored a career-high 27 points, but his hook shot with 4:41 left was Los Angeles’ only field goal in the final seven-plus minutes.

“We need to start playing harder in the fourth quarter,” second-year guard Eric Gordon(notes) said. “We also need to do a better job of stopping the other team on defense. We had a couple of good runs and a few leads, but they made big plays and made the tough shots in the end.”

Kaman missed the first two games against Minnesota last season with plantar fasciitis in his left foot, and also did not play in an 87-77 loss to the visiting Timberwolves on April 7 due to flu-like symptoms.

Gordon hit five 3-pointers and scored 28 points in that game - the Clippers’ third straight home loss to Minnesota.

The Timberwolves (1-2) make their first visit to Los Angeles this season following Sunday’s 120-112 loss at Phoenix.

Minnesota pulled within 110-105 with 3:13 left on Ryan Hollins’(notes) jumper, but the Suns outscored the Timberwolves 8-2 until Ryan Gomes’(notes) 3-pointer with 12 seconds remaining.

“These guys are young,” said first-year coach Kurt Rambis, who returns to Los Angeles, where he was a Lakers assistant for 10 years. “Without experience or knowledge, they don’t know how to play against them (the Suns). They don’t understand all the nuances of playing a team like that. Late in the game, we gave ourselves a chance. But they made a couple of shots down the stretch.”

Gomes had 23 points and 15 rebounds while teammate Al Jefferson(notes) scored 21 and shot 9 of 23. Still working his way back from an Achilles’ injury, Jefferson played a season-high 33 minutes.

He averaged 24.0 points and 12.5 boards in the first two games against the Clippers last season before missing the April 7 matchup with a torn ACL.

Minnesota is shooting 41.7 percent from the field, including 28.1 percent from long distance.

The Clippers are 0-4 for the fifth time in their history.

POD: NY Yankees @ Philadelphia+1.5 (3K units) L

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Preview: The New York Yankees wanted a dominant pitcher to lead them deep into the postseason, so they made CC Sabathia(notes) the richest pitcher in baseball history. Now, Sabathia can now move them within a victory of their first World Series title in nine years.


The workhorse will take the ball on three days’ rest Sunday night when the Yankees and Philadelphia Phillies play Game 4 of the World Series at Citizens Bank Park.

The Yankees turned an early 3-0 deficit into an 8-5 victory in Saturday night’s Game 3, claiming a 2-1 lead in the series. Alex Rodriguez(notes), Nick Swisher(notes) and Hideki Matsui(notes) all homered for New York, with Rodriguez’s two-run shot in the fourth inning the result of the first video replay reversal in World Series history.



After watching their 13-year streak of playoff appearances come to an end last fall, the Yankees felt upgrading their rotation was a priority if they were going to challenge for their first World Series title since winning No. 26 in 2000. Landing Sabathia via free agency - for $161 million over seven years - has proven to be the right move.

The left-hander’s first season in the Bronx was a rousing success, as he went 19-8 with a 3.37 ERA to garner consideration for his second AL Cy Young Award and help the Yankees back to the playoffs.

Sabathia - the 2007 Cy Young winner with Cleveland - hasn’t slowed in the postseason, posting a 3-1 record and 1.52 ERA and winning AL championship series MVP honors. Now, he’ll take the mound on three days’ rest, a situation in which he is quite capable. Including postseason, Sabathia is 5-3 with a 3.16 ERA in eight starts when throwing on short rest.

“I hate to throw bullpens,” said Sabathia, who took the loss in Game 1 opposite Phillies ace Cliff Lee(notes) while allowing two runs on homers by Chase Utley(notes) in seven innings. “I don’t have to throw a bullpen when I pitch on three days’ rest.

“It feels good for them to have confidence in you, especially in these situations. It gives you confidence when your team has confidence and the guys want you out there and everybody is asking: ‘Are you pitching today?’ and ‘Are you pitching tomorrow?’”

Yankees manager Joe Girardi has elected to shorten the rotation to Sabathia, A.J. Burnett(notes) and Andy Pettitte(notes) - Saturday’s winning pitcher. Burnett is expected to start Monday.

“There is no baseball after the World Series for four or five months, so there will be plenty of time to rest,” Girardi said.

Girardi also used Sabathia on short rest in Game 4 of the ALCS, and the three-time All-Star allowed one run in eight innings of a 10-1 win over the Los Angeles Angels.

Phillies manager Charlie Manuel has opted not to ask Lee to pitch on three days’ rest for the first time in his career. Instead, Lee is scheduled to start Monday’s Game 5 in what could be an elimination contest.

Joe Blanton(notes) gets the nod in Game 4 for a second consecutive year. The right-hander combined with four relievers on a five-hitter in a 10-2 win over Tampa Bay last October that gave the Phillies a 3-1 World Series lead. He also hit the first World Series home run by a pitcher since Oakland’s Ken Holtzman in 1974.

“It’s a big game, but it’s another game,” Blanton said. “And I think just the experience you draw from last year, just the fact that you’ve been there before, you’ve been in that environment, you’ve been in that atmosphere, you’ve kind of been in that big game situation - and you can just kind of draw back and kind of keep your emotions in check.”

Blanton hasn’t had any success against the Yankees, going 0-3 with an 8.18 ERA in four starts. All of those games came with Oakland, where he spent four-plus seasons before joining Philadelphia last year in a midseason trade.

Blanton has also struggled against Alex Rodriguez, who is 4 for 7 with two homers in their matchups.

The third baseman’s homer Saturday was the first of his career in the World Series, and snapped a personal 0-for-8 slump. It was also his sixth homer of this postseason, tying a Yankees record set by Bernie Williams(notes) in 1996.

“It was a big hit. I think it woke our offense up a little bit,” said Rodriguez, who struck out three times in each of the previous two games.

The Phillies are hoping their marquee slugger, Ryan Howard(notes), can break out of his slump in similar fashion.

The NLCS MVP is 2 for 13 with an RBI and nine strikeouts in the Series, fanning three times Saturday.

“Go home and go to sleep. I’m a simple guy,” Howard - 4 for 12 with six strikeouts against Sabathia including postseason - said after the Game 3 loss. “We’re not going to panic by any means just because we’re down in the Series.”

It may not be time to panic yet, but history doesn’t provide Philadelphia cause for optimism. This is the fourth time the Phillies have trailed 2-1 in a World Series. On all three previous occasions, they went on to lose Game 4 - and the series.

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