A late-game rally powered by their defense propelled the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel to their third win in four outings of the 2016 Oppo PBA Governor’s Cup against the Meralco Bolts, 107-93 on Saturday evening at the Quezon Convention Center, Lucena City.
Justin Brownlee led the charge for Ginebra with 26 points, six assists on 8/12 shooting from the floor. Sol Mercado and Japeth Aguilar both played a stellar outing as well with 19 and 15 points respectively on a combined 12/15 clip from the floor.
In a contrasting fourth quarter action, the Meralco Bolts struck first behind Allen Durham and Reynel Hugnatan in erasing a 10-point gap built by Ginebra entering the final frame. A couple of turnovers in by Ginebra saw their lead evaporate down to three at 90-87 with 4:37 left in regulation.
Fortunately for the crowd-favorites, Ginebra blasted a 17-6 closeout to the game ignited by balanced scoring from the local trio of Japeth Aguilar, Sol Mercado, and Joe Devance. In less than two minutes, the squad reinstalled a double-digit cushion as their defense also played a big part down the stretch.
Mercado provided key steals crucial to the rally while Brownlee asserted himself on the defensive end against Meralco import Durham. The suffocating defense by the Ginebra limited the Bolts to only two makes from the floor during the last four minutes, both of which insignificant to reduce the gap late.
Ginebra shot a remarkable 42-for-71 clip translating to 59 percent for the entire game compared to the Bolts’ 45 percent clip at 39-for-85. Despite getting pounded by Meralco from the interior points at 52-38, Ginebra made three more makes from downtown and scored a plus-five from the free throw area.
Four Meralco players finished in double-figures led by Cliff Hodge’s 19 points and seven rebounds. Hugnatan added 18 off the bench while Durham chipped in 17 but shot a poor 8/18 from the field.
Ginebra (3-1) currently sits at solo third after this win and looks to build on their win streak against the Blackwater Elite (1-2), while Meralco (2-2) has dropped its last two outings and seek to nab another win against the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters (2-1). Both games will be played on August 10 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Scores:
Ginebra (107) – Brownlee 26, Mercado 19, Aguilar 15, Caguioa 13, Tenorio 9, Devance 9, Thompson 7, Bonifacio 2, Helterbrand 2, Cruz 2, Mariano 2, Marcelo 1.
Meralco (93) – Hodge 19, Hugnatan 18, Durham 17, Newsome 16, Uyloan 9, Jamshidi 7, Alapag 3, Nabong 2, Bono 2, Faundo 0, Caram 0, Dillinger 0.
Quarterscores: 32-21, 51-47, 81-71, 107-93.
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