Ginebra erased an early deficit and then hung on to beat Blackwater, 90-87, to come out triumphant in another tough assignment in the PBA Season 48 Commissioner’s Cup, Sunday night at the Philsports Arena in Pasig.
Christian Standhardinger’s counted bucket off a Chris Ortiz goaltend broke the 84-all tie with 4:13 to go and gave the Kings the lead for good, before Tony Bishop helped out in pushing the lead to provide the needed breathing room.
Defense would then secure the victory for the reigning champions as Bishop and Japeth Aguilar both prevented Ortiz from getting any decent look for the potential game-tying three-pointer with 4.6 seconds left in the game.
“It was a struggle again for us tonight,” said head coach Tim Cone as they’re coming off a 107-102 win over Rain or Shine last Friday. “In some ways, these are good for us because they’re tough games and they toughen us up.
“We have to play well down the stretch, we have to defend well down the stretch. In that regard, it’s good for us, but we would like to play better. We would like to play better on both sides of the floor and we will continue to battle for that,” the decoratedcoach continued.
Bishop top-scored for Ginebra with 25 points and 11 rebounds in the win that hiked their card to 3-1 to share second place in the standings with Phoenix Super LPG and Meralco, who beat TNT earlier in the night/
Maverick Ahanmisi continued his solid play for the Barangay with 20 points, six rebounds, and five assists, together with a pair of steals.
Standhardinger supplied 16 points, 12 rebounds, and six assists, while Stanley Pringle chipped in 10 points in 25 minutes off the bench.
Despite the win, Ginebra is concerned after Scottie Thompson got hurt late in the second quarter as Bradwyn Guinto inadvertently landed on his left knee. The former MVP managed to finish the game but will undergo an MRI the soonest.
It was a tough blow for a Kings side that missed the services of Jamie Malonzo, who suffered a busted lip and a wrist injury against the Elasto Painters.
Now the Barangay hopes that both of them will get healthy soon, as they try to extend their win streak against Terrafirma next Sunday.
Ortiz, on the other hand, finished with 20 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists to lead Blackwater, who blew a 17-point first-half advantage.
RK Ilagan and Troy Rosario had 15 points apiece while Tyrus Hill added 11 for the Bossing, which suffered their fourth loss in a row.
Blackwater will try to arrest its skid against Rain or Shine on December 2.
The Scores:
Ginebra 90 – Bishop 25, Ahanmisi 20, Standhardinger 16, Pringle 10, J.Aguilar 8, Thompson 7, Pinto 4, Cu 0.
Blackwater 87 – Ortiz 20, Ilagan 15, Rosario 15, Hill 11, Suerte 8, DiGregorio 8, Guinto 8, David 2, Casio 0, Escoto 0, Ayonayon 0, Banal 0.
Quarterscores: 19-36, 41-50, 71-69, 90-87
