Meralco needed to stave off a furious fourth-quarter fightback before earning a measure of revenge against Titan Ultra, 118-105, to get back on track in the PBA Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup at the SMART Araneta Coliseum Sunday.
The Bolts already led by as many as 28 which practically turned the match into a snoozefest, until the Giant Risers roared back mightily and cut the gap to as close as eight points twice, the last being at 97-89 with 4:54 remaining.
However, the breaks went in the perennial contenders’ favor, with Chris Newsome getting away with an obvious shooting foul on Bryan Sajonia–much to the disappointment of opposing coach Rensy Bajar and his whole team.
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Titan Ultra winger Aris Dionisio was then assessed for a technical foul for contesting the non-call, and Newsome would go on to sink the bonus.
CJ Cansino then nailed a pull-up jumper, Bong Quinto quickly followed it up with a one-handed jam off a steal, and Jason Brickman went 2-for-2 from the foul line to push their lead to 106-89 with 3:10 left, effectively restoring order.
Eventually, Meralco would return to its winning ways after bowing to an all-Filipino Rain or Shine just last Friday, hiking its card to 3-1 as well.
Aside from that, the Bolts have gotten back at the team that dealt one of their first losses early in the season–the Giant Risers, still with Calvin Abueva that time, had a triumphant PBA debut back in October 8 at their expense, 100-96.
“Titan’s capable. Against San Miguel, they had a 41-point quarter. After getting their first win, they had no quit,” said head coach Luigi Trillo, as they faced a team that was coming off a stunner of San Miguel.
“But we did enough,” added the champion bench tactician, relieved that his charges overcame a 40-point fourth-quarter explosion by their foes.
Cansino top-scored for Meralco with 26 points alongside six rebounds and five assists, deservingly earning Player of the Game honors.
Marvin Jones, bent on finding redemption as well from that loss to the Elasto Painters, tallied 24 points, 14 rebounds, three assists, a steal, and a block.
Quinto supplied 15 points. Brickman continued his solid play with 13 points, four rebounds, and the same number of assists, while Javee Mocon added 11.
The Bolts will now turn their attention to Bol Bol and TNT (2-1) in an all-MVP Group showdown set on April 7, Tuesday, at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
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Put to naught by the loss was the season-high 29 points of Sajonia, 18 of which he made in the final period to power the comeback bid that fell short.
Import Michael Gilmore had 25 points and 16 rebounds as he and the rookie out of San Beda were the only players in double figures for Titan Ultra, which dropped to 1-3 after getting sent back crashing down to earth.
The Scores:
Meralco 118 – Cansino 26, Jones 24, Quinto 15, Brickman 13, Mocon 11, Banchero 9, Newsome 8, Black 6, Maliksi 3, Hodge 2, Almazan 1, Magbuhos 0
Titan Ultra 105 – Sajonia 29, Gilmore 25, Munzon 9, Balanza 9, Cuntapay 8, Yu 8, Flores 7, Dionisio 4, Ular 4, Javillonar 2, Caralipio 0, Omega 0, Pessumal 0, Melecio 0.
Quarterscores: 26-16, 61-42, 89-65, 118-105.
