For four games, the Star Hotshots were unsolvable, while Tony Mitchell was dominant. But nothing can’t be exposed under the watchful eyes of head coach Tim Cone.
Ganging up on Mitchell, the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel displayed their patented defense to take a 113-98 win over the Star Hotshots Sunday night, in front of partisan SM Mall of Asia Arena.
The rousing win marks the Barangay’s second win in a row and improves their record to 2-1, while the Hotshots suffered their very first loss in the import-laden conference and are now sporting a 4-1 slate.
“It was as a really up and down game. It was a game of runs which is what you expect from a Manila Clasico. I told the team at halftime, we were playing good basketball but they were playing better,” Cone said.
Justin Brownlee led Ginebra with 30 points and added 15 rebounds and four blocks to his tally, while LA Tenorio backed him up with 21 points on a 60 percent shooting clip. Sol Mercado added 15.
“Justin played good,” lauded head coach Tim Cone of his import. “Justin causes a lot of problems for people. He can play in and out, handle the ball make great passes, he’s a good defender, and he’s playing the way we envisioned him to play when we brought him in.”
Mercado doused a fiery Star comeback early in the payoff period, scoring eight straight points to lift Ginebra up 90-80. But Tony Mitchell and the Hotshots still rose back up and threatened as they closed within five, 94-89, with 7:04 remaining.
From there, the Brownlee takeover happened.
The 6-foot-7 American started his own onslaught with 5:23 left with a three-point play conversion. After that sequence, Brownlee scored six more off a jumper, a lay-up, and a dunk to widen Ginebra’s gap to 12, 104-92, with 3:21 left to play.
With LA Tenorio supporting Brownlee on offense, the Barangay were able to shut down the Hotshots and their hopes of mounting a comeback, adding nine points to their total — capped by a Tenorio triple — in the closing seconds to seal the deal.
But it was the team’s defense on Star — specifically their import — that played a huge part in the win. Mitchell was limited to 22 points on his season-worst 42.86 percent from the field, and just nine rebounds — seven rebounds below his norms. The Hotshots on the other hand shot just 38 percent from the field.
“Tony was playing exceptionally well this conference but I think we did a good job on him,” Cone said.
“Even though we’re playing with a small import, it sends a good message to us and the players that it can be done, that we can compete in this conference with Justin,” added Cone.
Ginebra shot an excellent 56 percent clip.
Ginebra will try to win their third game in a row against the winless NLEX on April 19, Wednesday, 7:00 PM at the Cuneta Astrodome, while Star will look to bounce back next Sunday, April 16, versus another rival San Miguel at 6:45 PM at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.
The Scores:
Ginebra (113) – Brownlee 30, Tenorio 21, Mercado 15, Aguilar 12, Thompson 8, Ferrer 8, Devance 7, Caguioa 6, Ellis 4, Marcelo 2.
Star (98) – Mitchell 22, Maliksi 17, Lee 11, Jalalon 10, Barroca 9, Ramos 7, Brondial 7, Mendoza 6, Simon 5, Reavis 4, Sangalang 0.
Quarterscores: 26-24, 51-53, 82-75, 113-98.
