Bobby Ray Parks Jr. showed that the long wait for him was worth it, steering the Blackwater Elite past the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel in overtime, 108-107, for their second straight win in the 2019 PBA Commissioner’s Cup Friday night at SMART Araneta Coliseum.
The seasoned rookie scored 10 of the Elite’s 14 points in the extra period, including two triples and the free throws with 47.9 seconds left, His shots gave them a 108-104 lead, which they hung on to en route to the win over the defending champs.
Parks, Jr. finished with 28 points, on top of three rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
“I have so much trust with my guys, but I just felt that he [Parks, Jr.] was the best option,” said Blackwater interim head coach Aris Dimaunahan. “For a rookie to have such mentality, that speaks a lot about being the winner that he is.”
Parks Jr.’s big night nearly blew out, though, when Justin Brownlee’s three-pointer lifted Ginebra to within one, 107-108, with 36.5 seconds left. Add to that the ill-advised three-pointer by Allein Maliksi that missed seconds later.
Luckily for Blackwater, Scottie Thompson’s three-pointer on the other end missed as well.
“I have to give a lot of credit to our players. ‘Di ko ma-explain, but I always thought that our team is built for this kind of games,” said Dimaunahan. “Those tune-ups that we had, ni-ready kami sa mga ganitong pagkakataon.
“Those tune-ups were all close. This is another hell of a game for us. Total team effort. Nobody folded. They accepted the challenge of playing Ginebra,” added Dimaunahan, who has now beaten his former team and former coach.
Import Alex Stepheson produced 28 points as well alongside 25 rebounds — this, after hauling down 31 versus the Meralco Bolts last Sunday — in the win.
Mac Belo flirted with a triple-double by churning out 20 points, 13 rebounds, and six assists to lead the Elite’s locals. Mike DiGregorio supplied 12 markers and seven rebounds, while Maliksi chimed in 11 points on 5-of-16 shooting.
Brownlee led the Barangay with 44 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists. Greg Slaughter was the only other double-digit scorer for the crowd darlings with 24 points and eight rebounds with three blocks.
Both teams will play again this Sunday, May 27, still at the Big Dome. Blackwater will look to go up 3-0 versus the 0-2 Columbian Dyip at 4:30 PM, while Ginebra will aim to get their first win versus rivals Meralco Bolts at 6:45 PM.
The Scores:
Blackwater 108 – Parks 28, Stepheson 28, Belo 20, Digregorio 12, Maliksi 11, Sumang 5, Cortez 2, Tratter 2, Sena 0, Al-Hussaini 0, Alolino 0, Desiderio 0.
Ginebra 107 – Brownlee 44, Slaughter 24, Tenorio 8, Dela Cruz 8, Chan 7, Thompson 7, Aguilar 3, Caperal 2, Mariano 2, Ferrer 2, Teodoro 0, Mercado 0.
Quarterscores: 25-22, 46-47, 70-79, 94-94, 108-107.
