Ginebra brought out the brooms and swept Meralco, 113-106, to book the first seat to the PBA Season 49 Governors’ Cup semifinals, Monday evening.
Heroes were aplenty for the Barangay in the triumph, with Stephen Holt and Maverick Ahanmisi icing the game through perfect trips to the foul line with 21.5 seconds left to play to complete the ouster of their long-time rivals.
Those preserved as well the efforts of RJ Abarrientos, Scottie Thompson, and Japeth Aguilar in keeping the crew in control after trailing by 12, 78-66, late in the third — a rally fueled by their faithful inside the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
Now, the Kings will brace for the best-of-7 semis against the winner between San Miguel Beer and Converge. The series could start as early as Sunday.
“First of all, I’m totally shocked that we were able to beat them in three straight games,” said head coach Tim Cone post-game. “Credit just goes to the guys for really reaching deep. They really locked in in the second half.
“And so it was amazing to see them really reach deep from within themselves to pull this game out,” the champion mentor furthered,
That fightback wouldn’t be possible without Justin Brownlee, who nailed two four-pointers early in the fourth to start shifting the tides in their favor, eventually leading to another playoff series victory against their old foes.
Brownlee finished with a team-high 23 points, three rebounds, and four assists as he remained unbeaten against Meralco in the playoffs.
The three-time Best Import spearheaded the Barangay’s balanced attack, which saw a total of six players finish in double figures to complete the sweep.
Holt produced 19 points, including 10 in the fourth alone, seven rebounds, and five assists as he’s bound for his first PBA semis appearance.
Japeth Aguilar had 19 as well. Rookie Abarrientos supplied 17 points on 54.5-percent shooting from the floor, six rebounds, and six assists.
Also registering 17 markers was Ahanmisi, while Thompson came through with 16 points, four rebounds, three assists, and a steal as Ginebra got back on the team that beat them in Game 7 of last season’s Philippine Cup semis.
“They tore us apart in Game 7 so it’s been a long time coming to come back and have a chance to make up for that, especially for our fans,” Cone said as his wards absorbed a 78-69 defeat to the eventual All-Filipino champs back then.
Allen Durham led Meralco with 38 points and 13 rebounds but his efforts were not enough to at least keep his team alive in the series.
Bong Quinto made 19 points. Main man Chris Newsome had 14 while Chris Banchero and Cliff Hodge added 10 each for a Bolts side that played incomplete as it missed the services of Allein Maliksi and CJ Cansino due to injuries.
Their conference done, Meralco will now shift its focus on the upcoming East Asia Super League season that starts on Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The Scores:
Ginebra 113 – Brownlee 23, Holt 19, J.Aguilar 19, Abarrientos 17, Ahanmisi 17, Thompson 16, Devance 2, Cu 0, R.Aguilar 0, Pessumal 0.
Meralco 106 – Durham 38, Quinto 19, Newsome 14, Banchero 10, Hodge 10, Caram 7, Bates 4, Rios 2, Mendoza 2, Pascual 0.
Quarterscores: 28-27, 47-56, 83-72, 113-106.
