Magnolia withstood TNT, 96-93, to remain unbeaten in the 2021-22 PBA Governors’ Cup, Friday evening at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
The 2018 PBA Governors’ Cup Best Import finished with 41 points on 61-percent shooting from the field and 18 rebounds as he led the Hotshots’ fiery start before providing the needed endgame stability to bring his side to a 4-0 record.
They have regained sole leadership of the standings after briefly sharing such with Meralco, who went 3-0 earlier after downing NLEX.
“Sabi ko nga, it’s not only the talent of Mike but his leadership,” said head coach Chito Victolero. “He led us in the fourth quarter, stabilized the team especially when Talk ‘N Text made some runs in the fourth quarter.”
Fourteen points were already registered by Harris in the opening frame alone, which saw him lead his side to a rousing 25-6 start into the match.
The Tropang Giga, though, refused to throw in the towel. They rallied in the second half and eventually took the lead, 78-77, following Jayson Castro’s technical free throw with 8:38 remaining in the fourth quarter.
But Harris was there to burst their foes’ bubble. He tied the game through a split right after and went on to join hands with Calvin Abueva and Mark Barroca for an 8-0 run to make it 85-78 with 6:26 on the clock.
Magnolia then pushed the lead to nine, but TNT answered back once more and managed to knock within a solitary point, 90-91, following back-to-back three-pointers by Kib Montalbo with 48.4 seconds remaining.
That, however, would be their last run. Ian Sangalang, Paul Lee, and Mark Barroca kept them at bay through their charities for a 96-91 cushion.
Mikey Williams tried to will his side back, but Harris would be the one to foil whatever hopes they had. Though he missed his foul shots, the American cager hauled down his own miss to secure the victory.
“It’s one of our motivations, ‘yung they beat us in the finals,” said Victolero, referring to the 2021 Philippine Cup Finals that saw them bow to TNT in five games. “I told them to use it as one of the motivations.
“But, kumbaga, kinuha namin yung game na ‘to possession by possession. I told them at the start of the game that we cannot expect yung resulta agad, but we need to prepare possession by possession,” he added.
Lee finished with 15 points, while Barroca turned in numbers across the board with 14 markers, seven boards, six dimes, and two steals.
The Hotshots eked out the win even without Rome Dela Rosa and rookie center James Laput as both are out due to injuries.
Also disarmed were TNT, who was already without RR Pogoy due to a calf injury before losing Poy Erram to an apparent back injury.
Import Aaron Fuller led the Tropa with 21 points in 11 rebounds in the loss that pulled their record 2-3. Williams supplied 17 points and six rebounds.
Gab Banal helped out TNT as well with 16 points on five triples. Jayson Castro finished with 15 points, eight assists, and five rebounds.
Magnolia will return to action on Wednesday, February 16, versus NLEX (4-2) at 3:00 p.m. TNT, on the other hand, will have a chance to bounce back immediately as it battles Phoenix Super LPG (3-2) this Sunday at 4:00 p.m.
The Scores:
Magnolia 96 – Harris 41, Lee 15, Barroca 14, Sangalang 7, Abueva 6, Jalalon 6, Reavis 4, Ahanmisi 3, Corpuz 0, Wong 0, Dionisio 0.
TNT 93 – Fuller 21, M. Williams 17, Banal 16, Castro 15, Montalbo 8, K. Williams 7, Erram 5, Reyes 3, Rosario 1, Khobuntin 0, Heruela 0, Marcelo 0.
Quarterscores: 31-14, 52-39, 71-66, 96-93.
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