Ginebra leaned on its usual suspects in the endgame to beat Meralco once again, 100-92, and move a step closer to the PBA Season 49 Commissioner’s Cup semifinals Wednesday night at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
Justin Brownlee, Scottie Thompson, and RJ Abarrientos all came through with the important shots late in the fourth quarter to gain much-needed separation toward chalking up the 1-0 lead in their best-of-3 quarterfinal series.
The Kings could finish it off in Game 2 Friday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium, looking to emulate what they did in their Season 49 Governors’ Cup quarters battle where they brought out the brooms to sweep their way into the semis.
“Lahat naman kami, ‘yung mga beterano, maganda ‘yung nilaro kasi alam namin kung ano ‘yung naka-stake ng game na ‘to, kung saan kami dadalhin parating sa Finals. Ito yung start,” Thompson said post-game.
Thompson finished with a full line of 23 points, seven rebounds, six assists, four steals, and a block on the way to earning Player of the Game honors.
Brownlee delivered 23 points as well alongside nine rebounds and a pair of assists, while Japeth Aguilar produced 19 points and nine rebounds.
Abarrientos chipped in 14 points off the bench as the quartet carried much of the load on offense for a team that utilized a short rotation.
Ginebra earned its fifth consecutive win against Meralco but it was by no means easy, as they lost an early 12-point lead and fell behind by a field goal, 87-85, with less than eight minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.
But the aforementioned made sure that the Kings won’t be denied to the finish line, with Thompson nailing five straight to give his side the 90-87 lead.
Raymond Almazan stopped the bleeding with a conversion from point-blank but the crowd darlings got in the groove, with Brownlee and Abarrientos helping out Thompson for the decisive run toward a 96-89 advantage with 5:21 to spare.
“Nagkakaamuyan na talaga. Medyo alam na namin ‘yung player tendencies [ni Meralco]. I think it’s up na lang sa amin kung paano namin i-execute lahat ng gameplan kasi nandiyan na yan lahat,” said Thompson.
Chris Newsome, meanwhile, led the Bolts with 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting from the field in the loss that has put the contenders in a precarious spot.
Import Akil Mitchell, back in action from a back injury, finished with 19 points, 14 rebounds, and six assists. Jansen Rios supplied 13 points, while Chris Banchero and Bong Quinto added 13 and 11 markers, respectively.
The Scores:
Barangay Ginebra 100 – Brownlee 23, Thompson 23, J. Aguilar 19, Abarrientos 14, Rosario 8, Malonzo 7, Holt 6, Ahanmisi 0.
Meralco 92 – Newsome 20, Mitchell 19, Rios 13, Banchero 12, Quinto 11, Almazan 8, Black 5, Hodge 4, Bates 0, Cansino 0.
Quarterscores: 24-17, 50-47, 78-76, 100-92.
