The Brgy. Ginebra San Miguel improved to a .500 record as they secure a 96-81 wire-to-wire victory over the GlobalPort Batang Pier held at the Quezon Convention Center in Lucena, Quezon.
Both teams had a hard time getting their groove in Lucena as freethrow shooting woes were evident early on. Mark Caguioa sizzled with two baskets that led to a 6-0 start for Ginebra. Errors were abound for GlobalPort’s Anthony Semerad, who muffed four of his first five freethrows, and Michael Dunigan who also missed on his charity line shots. While the Batang Pier’s offense grew stagnant due to Romeo’s early foul trouble, Ginebra cruised to a 13-7 lead.
Off the bench, Gabby Espinas scored six straight points for GlobalPort on three paint baskets, to move the scoreboard of Batang Pier. However, the Kings’ three-guard lineup whipped up a frantic pace in their favor, as Joseph Yeo, LA Tenorio and Jayjay Helterbrand posted a double-digit separation in the opening quarter. Ginebra and GlobalPort combined for an awful 5/18 from the 15-ft line at the end of the first period.
The frontline duo of Greg Slaughter and Japeth Aguilar then come off the bench and made their presence felt, as they grabbed majority of the boards, while scoring in the paint. Despite freethrow problems continued for both teams, Aguilar jammed in a two-handed flush to give Ginebra a 31-16 edge.
While Dunigan’s swarming defense clobbered GlobalPort, the transition game worked for the Kings once again, with a wide-open corner triple by Josh Urbiztondo. His shot contributed to a 17-point gap in the momentum-filled Ginebra first half. Batang Pier settled for perimeter shots but were also shooting blanks, as another Urbiztondo triple gave Ginebra a 20-point spread, eventually ending the first half with a commanding lead.
In the third quarter, GlobalPort had multiple chances to claw back, for Ginebra struggled with their early shots. Caguioa cooled down a bit and blanked his first two shots of the second half, while the Kings entered the penalty situation early. However, the Batang Pier was unable to take advantage due to their continuous shooting from the foul stripe, in addition to their multiple long-ranged attempts.
Ginebra maintained the comfortable lead, while they kept their momentum until the final period with Derreck Caracter sitting on the bench. Dunigan converted on a thunderous jam to make it a 77-54 game. Romeo scored on five straight points for GlobalPort, but was clearly not enough in the blowout. Ginebra sealed the game with the necessary stops and baskets to halt potential rallies by the Batang Pier.
Ginebra had more assists 25-12, more blocks 10-3 and committed less turnovers 13-19. Dunigan finished the night with 22 points, 18 boards and five shot blocks. Slaughter had a fine outing with an efficient 22-marker exertion on 13 shot attempts.
GlobalPort drops to 4-6 and will have San Miguel as their last opponent in the elimination phase while Ginebra improves to 5-5 with Alaska as their remaining assignment.
The scores:
Ginebra (96) – Dunigan 22, Slaughter 22, Caguioa 15, Urbiztondo 11, Tenorio 8, Yeo 8, Aguilar 6, Helterbrand 2, Peña 0, Baracael 0, Ababou 0, Brondial 0
GlobalPort (81) – Romeo 20, Caracter 16, Miranda 11, Jensen 8, Espinas 8, Semerad 8, Taha 4, Nabong 2, Buenafe 2, Pinto 2, Isip 0, Ponferada 0, Caperal 0, Cabrera 0
Quarters: 22-12, 46-27, 71-52, 96-81
