BY NOLI CORTEZ

KG Canaleta had shown he has what it takes to be a crowd-drawer. Last night, he proved he could be a real take-charge guy, too.

The record three-time slam dunk champion came up with timely hits in the fourth period, leading Air21 to a 104-86 win over Coca-Cola in the Smart PBA Fiesta Conference at the Araneta Coliseum.

"We’ve been waiting for KG to come out with his breakout game and I guess this is it," said Express coach Bo Perasol after Canaleta finished with a personal conference-high 29 points, 19 in the decisive period that sparked and fueled their breakaway from a tight game. Those fourth quarter points were the most by a local in the conference.

"He displayed what he can do, not only offensively but also defensively as well. There were times when Coke could have made a run but KG made it stop with his baskets," Perasol added.

"It was a team effort, but the talent he showed tonight proves he can be one premiere player in this league."

Even Canaleta could not pinpoint what he did differently as lead-up for his game that could have been made more special had he been able to match his career-high 32 set in the Philippine Cup last October.

"Big game para sa amin ito kaya pinaghandaan namin ng mabuti, naging focused kami," said the 6-foot-5 swingman who was picked No. 6 during the 2005 rookie draft. "Every game naman ibinibigay ang best."

The victory reprised Air21’s 102-95 triumph over Coke in their first meeting last April 13 and jacked the Express’ win-loss record to 5-4.

Meanwhile, Thirdy Ravena scored 20 points in the third quarter as Batang Talk N Text-Quezon City rolled to its third consecutive win in the Burlington-Batang PBA Summer League yesterday with a 137-32 blowout over Batang Coca-Cola Taguig at the Marikina Sport Center.