Mubashar Ali dropped 50 big points to will Terrafirma past Converge in overtime, 111-100, for their second win in as many games in the PBA Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup, Saturday at the Ynares Center II in Montalban.
The 7-foot slotman kept themselves in step with the FiberXers in regulation and found his second wind come the extra period, scoring six of their 11 points as they blanked the opposition in a strong finish hardly seen from past Dyip teams.
He was also responsible for tying things up at 100-all during the dying seconds of the fourth to eventually force OT, and went on to end the game with a tough bucket from inside with 2:03 left to cap off a stupendous performance as well.
Ali, who’s currently observing Ramadan, shot 20-of-36 from the floor, including a 7-for-11 clip from three-point distance, and also collected 25 rebounds, two assists, one steal, and three blocks in the 48 minutes he saw action.
(C) PBA Images
“This was a team effort, hindi lang si Ali … Kanina, sabi namin nung nag-overtime, OK ‘yung laro pero we need to work the extra mile for five more minutes,” said head coach Ronald Tubid. “It happened na sa amin napunta.”
It was indeed a team effort that enabled Terrafirma to come out triumphant, most especially in extra time, with rookie big man Geo Chiu and Jerrick Ahanmisi coming through with crucial plays on both ends of the floor.
Ahanmisi put the Dyip ahead for good by opening OT with a three-pointer, before Chiu forced a stop on Justine Baltazar on the other end. Ali then came through on offense to push their lead to 107-100 with 2:46 remaining.
Chiu, shortly after, stole the ball from Juan Gomez de Liano, which led to an easy Maverick Ahanmisi layup, as the no. 1 pick of the 2025 Draft made up for his sorry misses from late in regulation that could’ve tied the game earlier.
Ali then whammed the nail in the coffin, and the charges of Tubid would go on to seize the provisional lead of the standings with a clean 2-0 record.
“Gutom kami eh,” Tubid said. “‘Yung culture na ine-establish ngayon ng mga coaches, it starts in practice. Now we’re enjoying practice, we’re excited to practice, we’re doing good in practice so ita-translate na lang sa games ‘yun.”
The younger Ahanmisi supplied 14 points, spiked by four triples, alongside two rebounds and five assists, while Paolo Hernandez added a 13-5-6 stat line.
Chiu fell just a point shy of tallying his first PBA double-double with nine points and 13 rebounds, on top of two assists, a steal, and two blocks.
Terrafirma will look to extend its winning run to three when it locks horns with Blackwater on Wednesday, March 18, at the Ynares Center in Antipolo.
(C) PBA Images
Kylor Kelley led Converge with 17 points alongside 22 rebounds and six assists in the loss. Gomez de Liano also had 17 but went 6-of-20 from the floor.
Alec Stockton made 15 points. Justine Baltazar notched his own double-double with 13 points and 15 rebounds plus three assists, while Jonnel Policarpio and Archie Concepcion chipped in 11 and 10 markers, respectively.
Concepcion himself gave the FiberXers the 99-98 lead with 50.2 seconds left in regulation when he scored off an Ahanmisi foul, before Gomez de Liano’s split from the line widened the spread to a field goal just moments later.
But that proved to be their last taste of the lead as Mubashar tied it up, and Baltazar failed to win it as his long deuce only hit the rim.
It would be all Dyip from there as they finished the game with 13 unanswered points, making Converge the fourth team in PBA history to go scoreless in OT.
Coach Delta Pineda & Co. will try to bounce back immediately when they face the debuting Meralco Bolts on Wednesday as well at 7:30 p.m.
The Scores:
Terrafirma 111 – Mubashar 50, J. Ahanmisi 14, Hernandez 13, Chiu 9, M.Ahanmisi 8, Bravo 7, Eriobu 6, Umali 4, Adamos 0, Hanapi 0, Zaldivar 0.
Converge 100 – Kelley 17, Gomez de Liano 17, Stockton 15, Baltazar 13, Policarpio 11, Concepcion 10, Arana 6, Williams 5, Clemente 3, Garcia 3, Muyang 0.
Quarterscores: 24-25, 40-48, 70-75, 100-100, 111-100 (OT).
