| 2003 PBA Invitational Championship | |
|---|---|
| Duration | July 27 – August 23, 2003 |
| TV partner(s) | NBN/IBC |
| Finals | |
| Champions | Alaska Aces |
| Runners-up | Coca Cola Tigers |
| Awards | |
| Best Player |
Ali Peek ( Alaska Aces) |
| Finals MVP |
Brandon Cablay ( Alaska Aces) |
| PBA Invitational Championship chronology | |
| PBA conference chronology | |
The 2003 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Samsung-Invitational Championship, was the second conference of the 2003 PBA season. It started on July 27 and ended on August 23, 2003. The tournament features three guest foreign teams from Korea, China and Yugoslavia along with the Philippine national team.
The Alaska Aces captured their 11th PBA title by beating the Coca Cola Tigers, 2-1, in their best-of-three finals series. [1]
Brandon Cablay won on his first Finals MVP in Invitational Cup Championship.
Qualification
PBA Philippine Cup
- Top 5 teams qualify outright
- Bottom 5 teams proceed to last chance qualifying via Mabuhay Cup
| Pos | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Batang Red Bull Thunder | 14 | 4 | .778 | — | Qualify to Invitational Tournament |
| 2 | San Miguel Beermen | 12 | 6 | .667 | 2 | |
| 3 | Coca-Cola Tigers | 11 | 7 | .611 | 3 | |
| 4 | Talk 'N Text Phone Pals | 10 | 8 | .556 | 4 | |
| 5 | FedEx Express | 10 | 8 | .556 | 4 | |
| 6 | Alaska Aces | 9 | 9 | .500 | 5 | Proceed to Mabuhay Cup |
| 7 | Sta. Lucia Realtors | 8 | 10 | .444 | 6 | |
| 8 | Barangay Ginebra Kings | 6 | 12 | .333 | 8 | |
| 9 | Shell Turbo Chargers | 5 | 13 | .278 | 9 | |
| 10 | Purefoods TJ Hotdogs | 5 | 13 | .278 | 9 |
Samsung-PBA Mabuhay Cup
The Samsung PBA-Mabuhay Cup was the one-round robin between the five lower seeded teams based on their won-loss records in the elimination round of the All-Filipino Cup to determine the sixth and last qualifying team for the PBA second conference Invitationals.
The Alaska Aces made it as the sixth entry by defeating Barangay Ginebra Kings on July 20 at the Cuneta Astrodome for a perfect 4-0 slate. [2]
| Pos | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alaska Aces | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | — | Qualify to Invitational Tournament |
| 2 | Barangay Ginebra Kings | 2 | 2 | .500 | 2 | |
| 3 | Sta. Lucia Realtors | 2 | 2 | .500 | 2 | |
| 4 | Shell Turbo Chargers | 2 | 2 | .500 | 2 | |
| 5 | Purefoods TJ Hotdogs | 0 | 4 | .000 | 4 |
Elimination round
Group A
Red Bull gained the last slot in the crossover semis on August 13 at the Cuneta Astrodome in a bizarre ending, Talk 'N Text, which won 88-87, needed to win 8 points, went to the extent of shooting to the Red Bull's goal while enjoying the lead in the closing seconds to possibly force an overtime. [3]
| Pos | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | FedEx Express | 3 | 1 | .750 [a] | — | Qualify to semifinals |
| 2 | Red Bull Barako | 3 | 1 | .750 [a] | — | |
| 3 | Talk 'N Text Phone Pals | 3 | 1 | .750 [a] | — | |
| 4 | KK Novi Sad (Yugoslavia) (G) | 1 | 3 | .250 | 2 | |
| 5 | Yonsei University (South Korea) (G) | 0 | 4 | .000 | 3 |
Group B
| Pos | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alaska Aces | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | — | Qualify to semifinals |
| 2 | Coca-Cola Tigers | 3 | 1 | .750 | 1 | |
| 3 | San Miguel Beermen | 2 | 2 | .500 | 2 | |
| 4 | Cebuana Lhuillier (Philippine national team) (G) | 1 | 3 | .250 | 3 | |
| 5 | Magnolia-Jilin (China) (G) | 0 | 4 | .000 | 4 |
Bracket
| Semifinals (Single elimination) | Finals (Best-of-3) | ||||||||
| A1 | FedEx | 83 | |||||||
| B2 | Coca-Cola | 91 | |||||||
| B2 | Coca-Cola | 1 | |||||||
| B1 | Alaska | 2 | |||||||
| B1 | Alaska | 95 | |||||||
| A2 | Red Bull | 87 | Third-place playoff | ||||||
| A1 | FedEx | 99 | |||||||
| A2 | Red Bull | 84 | |||||||
Semifinals
Third place playoff
Finals
| ||||||||||
| Dates | August 17–30 2003 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MVP | Brandon Cablay | |||||||||
| Television | NBN/IBC | |||||||||
The 2003 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Invitational Conference finals was the best-of-3 basketball championship series of the 2003 PBA Invitational Conference, and the conclusion of the conference's playoffs. Alaska Aces and Coca-Cola Tigers played for the 85th championship contested by the league.
Alaska Aces won their 11th championship.
Series scoring summary
The following scoring summary is written in a line score format, except that the quarter numbers are replaced by game numbers.
| Team | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | Wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | 81 | 76† | 91 | 2 |
| Coca-Cola | 94 | 78 | 86 | 1 |
† denotes the number of overtimes
Scores
Brandon Lee Cablay held the Aces together with timely hits then sparked a fiery Alaska windup as the Tigers came back from 16 points down to even lead twice early in the last quarter. Cablay nailed a three-pointer that tied the count for the final time at 70-all and added back-to-back baskets that finally doomed the Tigers, 84-74, with 2:24 left in the game. The 6-foot Cablay was adjudged as the first rookie Finals MVP since Danny Seigle with San Miguel back in 1999. [4]
References
- ^ "Odds even in titular showdown". Philippine Daily Inquirer.
- ^ "Alaska Aces clinch sixth and last Invitationals berth". Philippine Daily Inquirer.
- ^ "Mockery to cost TNT heavy fines". Philippine Daily Inquirer.
- ^ "Alaska subdues Coke, rules PBA Invitational". Philippine Daily Inquirer.
