Bong Quinto sank the game-winner as Meralco completed a huge comeback to beat NorthPort, 105-104, and snap a three-game losing skid in the PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup, Friday night at the Philsports Arena in Pasig.
The budding star winger took it strong to the hoop and got the bucket to fall with 2.7 seconds left to play, and William Navarro missing jumper as time expired enabled the Bolts to pull off the great escape after being down by 15 early.
Quinto finished with 17 points and nine rebounds as his heroics made the Batang Pier pay dearly for their costly misses from the foul line that could’ve given them a better chance of averting disaster had they only made those.
Jio Jalalon missed both of his free throws with 8.4 ticks to go and his attempt at saving the ball became a turnover when he failed to secure as much, giving Meralco a chance to draw up a play and take the lead — which they did.
(C) PBA Images
“Excellent fight from our guys,” said Coach Luigi Trillo. “We’re struggling; in the last two games, we got beaten black and blue, talagang nilalampaso kami.
“But sometimes when things are not going your way, you have to gut it out,” he added. “Sometimes, you never know till the end. That’s what happened.”
Chris Newsome top-scored for Meralco with 24 points. Chris Banchero had 23 points while Cliff Hodge notched 18 points and 14 rebounds.
Aaron Black added 14 as a balanced attack helped the crew gain confidence anew after suffering blowout losses to San Miguel, Phoenix, and Rain or Shine.
Put to naught by the loss, on the other hand, was the career-high 36 points of Joshua Munzon as he carried much of the scoring load for a NorthPort that continues to miss the presence of star forward Arvin Tolentino.
Navarro had 14 points. Jalalon made 11 while Cade Flores chipped in 10 markers as they fell to their fourth straight loss and dropped to 1-4.
The trio actually gave the Batang Pier a 104-99 lead with 23.3 seconds remaining in the match after Jalalon went perfect in his trip to the line.
(C) PBA Images
But things turned out badly afterward as Coach Bonnie Tan’s men failed to keep the lead. Sidney Onwubera had the chance to keep their foes at arm’s length but missed his freebies, which were supposed to negate Banchero’s basket prior.
It did not help their cause that Jalalon got called for a foul against Newsome, who then made his own charities to pull his team to a point, 104-103.
Then came the crazy windup, with Lady Luck slowly turning her back on NorthPort and smiling on Meralco instead, ultimately getting the defending champions back on track with a win they so needed for a busy stretch ahead.
The Scores:
Meralco 105 – Newsome 24, Banchero 23, Hodge 18, Quinto 17, Black 14, Cansino 3, Bates 2, Jose 2, Rios 2, Almazan 0, Pasaol 0, Caram 0, Torres 0.
NorthPort 104 – Munzon 36, Navarro 14, Jalalon 11, Kwekuteye 10, Flores 10, Nelle 7, Onwubere 7, Cuntapay 6, Bulanadi 3, Nava 0, Taha 0.
Quarterscores: 21-30, 42-54, 74-81, 105-104.
