Juan Gomez de Liano was clearly a man amongst boys on Tuesday.
The former Tokyo Z import tallied a monster triple-double, powering Marinerong Pilipino to a dominant 84-64 win over EcoOil-De La Salle University in the 2022 PBA D-League Aspirants Cup at Ynares Arena in Pasig City.
Gomez de Liano finished with 27 points on a 10-of-18 shooting clip with 11 rebounds and 12 assists, towing the Skippers to a 2-0 mark for early leadership in the tournament.
Behind Gomez de Liano and another former B.League import in Kemark Carino, Marinerong Pilipino was able to break away in the second frame, limiting the Green Archers to just 11 points to turn a 23-22 deficit into a 45-34 lead.
The Mapua boys then picked it up in the final frame, extending the lead to as high as 25 points in the final frame.
Carino ended up with 10 points and nine rebounds in just 14 minutes of action while Jollo Go got 17 points to compensate for his nine errors. Carino though only played in the first half after suffering an apparent knee injury after Joaqui Manuel crashed into him.
“Masaya kami na nakuha namin yung game against La Salle,” said coach Yong Garcia. “For me, credit ito sa players namin kasi na-run namin ng maayos yung gameplan namin at binigay nila yung best nila.”
It was a dismal outing for Mike Phillips as the UAAP Season 84 Mythical Team member ended up with just 10 points on 4-of-12 shooting with 12 rebounds.
Penny Estacio and Manuel added 13 and 12 points, respectively.
The Scores:
Marinerong Pilipino 84 – Gomez de Liano 27, Go 17, Nocum 11, Carino 10, Bonifacio 8, Gamboa 7, Bonsubre 2, Pido 2, Hernandez 0, Garcia 0, Lacap 0, Agustin 0.
EcoOil-DLSU 64 – Estacio 13, Manuel 12, M. Phillips 10, Austria 9, Galman 6, Buensalida 6, B. Phillips 4, Abadam 2, Cortez 2, Blanco 0, Escandor 0.
Quarterscores: 22-23, 45-34, 63-51, 84-64.
