Manila Stars-Frontrow protected their home court, trumping Bacolod Master Sardines, 87-70, Friday night in the 2019-20 Chooks-to-Go MPBL Lakan Season at the San Andres Sports Complex.
Already ahead at the start of the fourth quarter, 63-53, the Stars unleashed a 17-6 bomb, punctuated by Mark Dyke’s left wing triple with 3:01 left to put the game out of reach, 80-59.
“Dinagdagan namin ‘yung defensive intensity, kasi medyo nag-relax sila nung laman na nang malaki, kaya nag-adjust kami defensively,” said Manila coach Tino Pinot.
Entering the third period down, 31-45, Bacolod launched a comeback via a 14-6 run to cut Manila’s lead to six, 45-51. The Stars quickly answered back with an 8-2 counter run, though, restoring order, 59-47.
Carlo Lastimosa led Manila-Frontrow with 22 points and five steals. Dyke chalked up a double-double of 17 points and 10 boards, while Aris Dionisio chipped in 17 of his own.
The victory gave the Stars a piece of the second spot in the North, alongside Makati, both sporting 20-4 win-loss cards.
Yankee Haruna paced Bacolod with 17 points. Ben Adamos and Paolo Javelona each tallied 11 markers, with the former also adding 10 rebounds.
The loss dealt the Master Sardines-backed squad a big blow to their playoff hopes, slipping to 8-16, 4.5 games out of eighth place.
The Scores:
MANILA-FRONTROW 87 – Lastimosa 22, Dyke 17, Dionisio 17, Lee 12, Matias 5, Espinas 3, Gabriel 3, Tallo 2, Manalo 2, Camacho 2, Bitoon 2, Lopez 0, Go 0.
BACOLOD MASTER SARDINES 70 – Haruna 17, Adamos 11, Javelona 11, Pretta 8, Villahermosa 7, Tansingco 6, Camacho 6, Gayosa 2, Charcos 2, Custodio 0, Bernardo 0, Dela Cruz 0, Cañada 0, Reyes 0.
Quarterscores: 23-16, 45-31, 63-53, 87-70.
Story by Justin Valencia
Photo by Thel Suliva
