Converge displayed character to pull off the 98-91 upset of Barangay Ginebra and post its third straight win in the PBA Season 49 Commissioner’s Cup before a solid crowd at the Batangas City Coliseum on Saturday night.
Alec Stockton starred in the big third-quarter reversal before Deschon Winston, Justin Arana, and Cheick Diallo came through to make sure that the FiberXers would complete the comeback after staring at a 57-40 deficit at the half.
The youth-laden crew improved to 5-2 in the conference standings while the crowd darlings, who played sans Japeth Aguilar, dropped to 3-2.
Stockton earned Player of the Game honors with a team-high 22 points, six rebounds, and eight assists in another impressive outing for the rising star.
The former Far Eastern University guard produced 17 of his points in the third, as he strapped Converge on his back early in the period before chipping into their big 20-0 run abridging the said chapter and the final frame.
A key contributor to that scoring spree — which shifted the momentum in their favor for good — was Winston, opening the fourth with eight consecutive points to give themselves a decade’s worth of a lead, 80-70, with 10:30 remaining.
And when the Kings threatened by getting to within just three approaching the last three minutes, Jordan Heading split his charities before Diallo completed a strong three-point play to widen the spread to 95-88 with 1:54 on the clock.
Stockton would then help out in applying the finishing touches to repel their foes once and for all, finding Arana for a short stab from underneath and then splitting his foul shots with 31.5 seconds left to play for the eventual count.
Diallo fell just short of a 20-20 outing as he finished with 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting and 18 rebounds, together with a quartet of assists.
Winston delivered 15 points, 11 of which he made in the fourth. Heading made 13 points, four rebounds, and six assists while Arana added 11.
Rookie Justine Baltazar made his presence felt as well going up against Ginebra for the first time, supplying six points and 11 rebounds.
The FiberXers will now turn their attention to Christmas Day, where they will be taking on Meralco in a 5 p.m. encounter at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
It will be the opening salvo of a double-header offering, with the 7:30 p.m. main event featuring another Clasico duel between the Barangay and Magnolia.
But based on Saturday’s result, the Kings are heading into that rivalry affair coming off a loss, unlike their foes who have just laid their three-game skid to rest following a 99-95 overtime win over NLEX barely 24 hours ago.
Put to naught by the defeat was the 39-point showing of Justin Brownlee, who also had 10 rebounds and five assists plus a steal and two blocks.
Ahanmisi had 15 points, while RJ Abarrientos chipped in 11 in the collapse that also spoiled the return of Stephen Holt, who played through a bruised knee.
The Scores:
Converge 98 – Stockton 22, Diallo 19, Winston 15, Heading 13, Arana 11, Santos 8, Baltazar 6 Racal 3, Nieto 1, Caralipio 0, Delos Santos 0, Andrade 0.
Ginebra 91 – Brownlee 39, Ahanmisi 15, Abarrientos 11, Thompson 8, Tenorio 5, Rosario 5, Mariano 4, Adamos 2, Cu 2, Holt 0.
Quarterscores: 21-23, 40-57, 73-70, 98-91.
