Converge finally notched a win following a 104-99 stunner of Meralco in the PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup, Sunday at the Philsports Arena in Pasig.
Bryan Santos broke the 97-all tie with a booming trey with 1:37 to go, before JL Delos Santos struck the dagger through a jumper with 10.8 seconds left as the FiberXers broke through, at last, after an 0-7 start to the conference.
“We didn’t lose hope when the losses were piling up, We are excited for that first win and we want to exit this conference on a high note,” said head coach Aldin Ayo. “Hopefully, we can carry it over to the next conference.”
Santos top-scored with a season-high 22 points, including 16 in the third quarter to lead their 35-point explosion to erase an 11-point deficit and tie things up at 77-all heading into the fourth, setting up the tight finish.
The sweet-shooting big man shot 7-of-10 from beyond the arc and also hauled down five rebounds in 40 minutes of action as a starter.
Alec Stockton supplied 20 points. Main man Justin Arana produced 18 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists. Deschon Winston made 14 points while Delos Santos added 10 markers in their first win of 2024.
“They’re just playing their roles. They’re trying to support each other. Hindi mo makikita sa mga players namin na low morale,” Ayo said. “Even though ganito ‘yung standing namin, we’re looking for reasons to enjoy this game.”
Now down to its last two games, Converge will try to finish the season strong first against Barangay Ginebra on Saturday, April 27, 6:15 p.m. at the Aquilino Pimentel Jr. International Convention Center in Cagayan de Oro.
“We’re just going to compete. We want to end this conference on a high note. We’re going to prepare against crowd favorites in Ginebra,” Ayo said.
Chris Newsome, meanwhile, had 25 points to lead the Bolts, who fell to their third straight loss and dropped to 3-5 in the team standings.
Chris Banchero had 20 points on four triples. Aaron Black made 19 points while Cliff Hodge added 10 points and nine rebounds in the upset loss.
The Scores:
Converge 104 – Santos 22, Stockton 20, Arana 18, Winston 14, Delos Santos 10, Caralipio 9, Maagdenberg 4, Melecio 4, Nieto 2, Fleming 1, Fornilos 0.
Meralco 99 – Newsome 25, Banchero 20, Black 19, Hodge 10, Quinto 9, Caram 6, Bates 5, Pasaol 5, Rios 0, Pascual 0, Maliski 0, Torres 0.
Quarterscores: 23-25, 42-53, 77-77, 104-99.
