ANTIPOLO – Converge showed much better composure in crunch time while dealing an erratic Blackwater yet another loss, 99-94, to bounce back in the PBA Season 50 Philippine Cup on Saturday at the Ynares Center here.
The FiberXers found themselves hanging on to a precarious two-point lead entering the final minute. However, the Bossing wasted one too many chances of at least tying the ball game, with Christian David committing crucial turnovers.
David was actually having himself a solid outing after slumping in their past few games, and his crew went to him in a bid to tie things up, only to lose possession when he tried to post up Alec Stockton with 6.7 seconds remaining.
Stockton, fouled to freeze the clock, went on to widen their lead to four moments later, although that remained a one-possession lead. David once again fumbled after having his inbound pass intercepted by Juan Gomez de Liano.
The rookie playmaker then went on to put it away with a split from the foul line with 3.1 seconds left to come away with their fourth win of the meet.
(C) PBA Images
“Puso na lang po siguro, na hindi nag-give up yung mga bata sa huli,” offered head coach Delta Pineda, relieved to see his wards pull through. “Talagang close game pero ‘yung heart ng Converge, ‘yun ang nagpanalo po sa amin.”
Stockton led Converge with 28 points, 13 of which he made in the fourth quarter alone as he willed his side to keep in step with the opposition before helping put themselves ahead for good with key hits from the charity stripe.
He shot 8-of-14 from the floor and nearly went perfect from the foul line with an 8-for-9 clip, and also collected two assists, two steals, and two blocks.
Gomez De Liano scored 14 points, seven rebounds, and five assists. Justine Baltazar made 11 points and 14 rebounds, plus seven assists. Meanwhile, Justin Arana came through with his own double-double of 11 & 11 plus a pair of assists.
Archie Concepcion had a solid outing against his former team, finishing with eight points, including two from distance.
And thanks to that balanced attack, the FiberXers rolled back on track after losing to San Miguel last time out, improving to 4-2 in the process.
“‘Yung loss sa San Miguel talagang tanggap naman namin iyon. That’s a champion team, beterano pa lahat,” said Pineda of the 96-90 loss. “Sa amin mga bata, kulang pa sa experience. Tanggap namin ‘yung talo na iyon.
“Doon kami matututo, eh Doon matututo team, doon matututo mga bata sa pagkakamali namin, ‘yung mga lapses namin during that game na nakapag-adjust ngayon,” the incumbent Pampanga vice governor added.
Converge will try to create some separation against its fellow 4-2 teams in Magnolia and the Beermen when it takes on Barangay Ginebra San Miguel on November 14, Friday, 7:30 PM at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
Wasted by the disappointing loss, on the other hand, was the 33-point showing of Sedrick Barefield to lead Blackwater, which fell to its fifth straight defeat and became the third to drop to 1-5 after Phoenix and Terrafirma.
(C) PBA Images
Ditto with David, who had 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the field — including two triples — and seven rebounds before those costly errors.
Dalph Panopio made 11 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, and three steals, while Abu Tratter chipped in 10 markers for the Bossing.
Blackwater will take on Magnolia next on November 14 as well at 5:15 PM, hoping to finally snap out of its skid, although the crew will have to do as much against a team hungry to get back on track after losing narrowly to SMB.
The Scores:
Converge 99 – Stockton 28, Gomez de Liano 14, Baltazar 11, Arana 11, Winston 8, Muyang 8, Concepcion 8, Garcia 5, Suerte 3, Racal 3, Delos Santos 0, Javillonar 0, Eguilos 0, Clemente 0.
Blackwater 94 – Barefield 33, David 18, Paonopio 11, Tratter 10, Guinto 8, Mendoza 7, Mallilin 5, Murrell 2, Andrade 0, Jopia 0, Cruz-Dumont 0, Escoto 0.
Quarterscores: 21-25, 49-46, 78-72, 98-94.
