Troy Rosario turned in his best game in a Ginebra jersey thus far to power his side to a 93-81 victory over San Miguel in the PBA Season 49 Commissioner’s Cup before a solid crowd at the SMART Araneta Coliseum on Sunday night.
A free-agent signee prior to the mid-season conference, the veteran big man led the way with 22 points and 10 rebounds as he helped the Kings in their 31-point second-quarter explosion that set the tone for the conquest.
He was crucial in the fourth as well, nailing back-to-back treys for the 72-59 lead with nine minutes left to do his part in repelling the Beermen for eventually their second win in a row, in the process improving to 5-2 in the standings.
“Troy kind of represented our performance tonight and I thought we just really played hard. And again, Troy kind of represents that for us,” said Coach Tim Cone as he lauded the hustle displayed by the former Gilas stalwart.
Justin Brownlee finished with 19 points and seven rebounds, coming through with the finishing touches in the endgame after the Beermen got to within nine just nine points as he battled through flu-like symptoms.
“Justin was feeling under the weather,” disclosed Cone, explaining the reason why the three-time Best Import was in-and-out of the fixture.
Stephen Holt made 15 points on a 3-of-6 clip from the first arc, while Jaoeth Aguilar produced 11 points, eight rebounds, and five assists.
Scottie Thompson, meanwhile, was just a field goal short of a rare triple-double feat as he tallied eight points, 12 rebounds, and 11 assists.
Now at no. 4, Ginebra will challenge the league-leading NorthPort (6-1) next on Wednesday, January 8, 7;30 p.m. at the Philsports Arena.
SMB, on the other hand, fell to its second loss in a row — the second time this conference that it lost two straight outings — and dropped to 3-4.
Jabari Narcis led for the crew with 17 points and 10 rebounds but struggled to shoot from the field as he went 8-for-18, including 1-of-6 from three.
CJ Perez had 14 points. June Mar Fajardo made 12 points and 23 rebounds, while Juami Tiongson added a 12-5-5 stat line in the defeat.
Coach Leo Austria, who’s still figuring out the best possible mix for the Beermen, missed the services of Don Trollano as he sat out due to an injury.
San Miguel will fly to Japan to face Hiroshima in the East Asia Super League on January 8 before returning to the conference and face Magnolia in another rivalry affair on Sunday, January 12, 7:30 p.m. in Antipolo.
The Scores:
Ginebra 93 – Rosario 22, Brownlee 19, Holt 15, J.Aguilar 11, Thompson 8, Abarrientos 8, Ahanmisi 7, Cu 3, Adamos 0.
San Miguel 81 – Narcis 17, Perez 14, Tiongson 12, Fajardo 12, Cruz 9, Lassiter 6, Cahilig 6, Ross 3, Tautuaa 2, Brondial 0, Enciso 0.
Quarterscores: 16-16, 47-31, 66-50, 93-81.
