By Reuel Vidal

ONE of the most fiercely contested championships in the annals of the Philippine Basketball Association comes to a conclusion today when the Alaska Aces meet the Talk N Text Tropang Texters in Game 7 of the KFC-PBA Philippine Cup at 7 p.m. at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Aces won Games 1, 2 and 5, while the Tropang Texters annexed Games 3, 4 and 6.

The Talk N Text Tropang Texters have always started strong, but the Alaska Aces have come back late in the game to make for an unbelievably exciting series of closely contested games.

In particular, the last two games have gone down to the dying seconds before the outcome was decided.

In Game 5, the Aces leaned on clutch triple by Willie Miller to carve out a 95-93 victory. TNT could have even won the game were it not for a missed triple attempt by Renren Ritualo in the dying seconds.

Game 6 followed the same script with the Aces overhauling a fat 19-point deficit before finally falling short as the Tropang Texters earned a 99-94 decision to equalize the series at 3-3. 

History may be on the side of Alaska, because the Tropang Texters have never ever won a championship Game 7. They lost to Alaska in the 2007 Fiesta Conference; to Red Bull in the 2002 Commissioner?s Cup, and to Shell in the 1998 Governors Cup.

The Alaska Aces and coach Tim Cone have won four and lost two Game 7 championships. They won the 2007 Fiesta Conference against Talk N Text; the 1998 All-Filipino Cup against San Miguel Beer; the 1996 Commissioner?s Cup against Shell and the 1995 Governors Cup against San Miguel Beer.

But the Aces lost the 2002 Governors Cup against Purefoods (after leading 2-0) and the 1995 All-Filipino Cup against Sunkist.

As if the competition wasn?t heated enough, a word war between Cone and Macmac Cardona over the latter?s taunting of Alaska players threatens to overshadow the action on the court.

?He [Cardona] keeps making baskets and taunting our players,? said Cone. ?I?m not going to allow that anymore. We?re going to send a strong message to him once he taunts a player of ours. If Cardona taunts any of our players again, I?m going to order that he be put out on the floor. He?s going to hit the floor with his head next time.?

Cone said Cardona taunted Alaska players several times and has not been warned by referees.

?I tell you that [taunting] starts fights, and I?m not going to have my players back down,? said Cone. ?If someone?s trash-talking them, they?re not going to back down. So either the referees have to be more attentive or it?s going to get ugly out there. I mean he did it to LA [Tenorio]. After LA fouled him, he completed the three-point play, he went right at his face, started screaming and jumping up and down. I tell you I?m not going to let my players take that.?

Talk N Text coach Chot Reyes defended Cardona saying that Alaska?s LA Tenorio was just as guilty of taunting.