Ginebra rebounded quickly in the PBA Season 50 Governors’ Cup by taking an 84-75 decision over a Meralco side that missed the services of important cogs, Friday night at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.
The Kings faced a team that was without Bong Quinto, CJ Cansino, and Jason Brickman, and they sure took advantage of it, pulling away in the second chapter before warding off the Bolts in the fourth quarter to remain in control.
Eventually, the crowd darlings improved to .500 with a 2-2 record in Group B, giving themselves as well renewed confidence heading into Sunday’s Manila Clasico affair against Magnolia (1-3) at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
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“It’s an ugly win, but we’ll take it. We had to defend as best we could, grind it out. That’s what we did today—really grind it out,” Coach Tim Cone said. “We had to rely on our best players to create, and they did, enough to create points tonight.”
RJ Abarrientos led the way with 27 points in his best game yet this conference for a squad that continues to miss Justin Brownlee and Scottie Thompson.
Import Riley Grigsby backed him up with 25 points and nine rebounds, with Stephen Holt and Troy Rosario combining for 15 points and 15 rebounds.
“Malalaking pieces ang nawala sa amin… Pero buo pa rin naman kami, basta kung sino ang ipasok, kailangan mag-step up,” Abarrientos said.
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Antonio Hester, on the other hand, had 24 points and 18 rebounds as he did much of the lifting for a Meralco team that played without a total of four men.
Aside from Cansino (strained hip flexor), Quinto (vertigo), and Brickman (flu), the Bots remained without Raymond Almazan due to back spasms.
Chris Banchero was Hester’s lone backup with 15 points, three rebounds, and five assists, managing to finish the game despite hurting his lower back during the first half when he hit the courtside seats after chasing a loose ball.
The Bolts have lost their second straight and fell to 2-3, and will try to bounce back quickly when they face the streaking Rain or Shine (3-2) this Sunday.
The Scores:
Ginebra 84 – Abarrientos 27, Grigsby 25, Holt 8, J. Aguilar 7, Rosario 7, Go 5, Cu 3, Gray 2, Abis 0, Pinto 0, Carino 0, Torres 0.
Meralco 75 – Hester 24, Banchero 15, Bates 8, Mocon 8, Newsome 7, Maliksi 6, Hodge 4, Rios 3, Comia 0, Caram 0, Black 0.
Quarterscores: 18-10, 44-29, 65-50, 84-75.
