MIKE Cortez is on a roll and so is Barangay Ginebra. 

The 2003 top draft pick continued to crank up his all-around game, not only helping the Kings stretch their winning streak to five but also earning for himself the Accel-PBA Player of the Week honors for the period Dec. 5 to 11. 

It was only the second such citation for Cortez since Jan. 2-8 of the 2005-06 Fiesta Conference, while he was still with Alaska and Ginebra coach Siot Tanquingcen is foremost among those glad to see him playing without the injuries that have made his career an up-and-down one the past few years.

Published on November 22, 2011

After hurting his left knee early in the game, Jayson Castro could have simply left the game for good, accepted Talk ‘N Text’s current misfortunes and followed to the sidelines the footsteps of fellow injured teammates Jimmy Alapag, Ryan Reyes, Ali Peek and Aaron Aban, and Ranidel de Ocampo who fell to cramps, in that game last Saturday against Rain or Shine in Cagayan de Oro City. 

But there was simply just too much fight and heart left in Castro to just give up and not be of help to his ailing team anymore. So he played through the pain and took matters into his own hands. The result was a 106-104 overtime win for the Tropang Texters that formalized their place in the playoffs.