In a game that took more than two hours to finish, the GlobalPort Batang Pier had to go through two extensions to finally come up with their first win in the Governor’s Cup against the Meralco Bolts, 126-123, at the SM Mall of Asia Arena on a thrilling Sunday evening.
Michael Glover led the Batang Pier, scoring 26 points. Anthony Semerad posted a career-high of 24 points to go along with three rebounds and a game-winning triple, lifting GlobalPort to their first win in five outings.
A frantic turnaround of events in regulation led to Meralco scoring six straight points in the last 20 seconds, erasing a 100-94 lead by Batang Pier to force the first overtime.
Despite two early threes by GlobalPort to open the extension, Allen Durham was unstoppable inside and forced another deadlock in the final stretch of first overtime. For GlobalPort, Stanley Pringle had two chances in both the fourth quarter and the first overtime, but he missed both potential game-winners on respective attacks on the rim.
In the second OT, Meralco went ahead first to lead by four at 122-118 with 2:30 left. After an exchange of free throws by the two teams, Jay Washington tied the game once again at 123 with a minute left.
Jimmy Alapag missed his attempt, while Pringle passed the ball this time, locating a wide-open Semerad in the right corner for the game-winning triple. Meralco had one last shot to extend the game for the third time but Jonathan Uyloan clanked his last attempt from beyond the arc.
“I’m just happy we got finally our first win. We played good,we moved the ball well and we just got back on defense and stop their fast breaks,” a delighted Semerad shared after the game.
“We just didn’t wanna break under pressure. We slipped a few games already and we just didn’t give up.”
The Batang Pier drained 13 three-pointers, a key stat that lifted them in this close game, compared to Meralco’s nine triples. Their 13 offensive rebounds also led to 17 points against the Bolts’ nine.
Durham’s 55-point effort was foiled in their defeat, as the Meralco import also had 14 rebounds, six assists, and a 15-of-20 clip from the free throw area. Bryan Faundo added 12 points.
GlobalPort (1-4) look to get it going and build their first win streak against the San Miguel Beermen (3-1) on Friday, while Meralco (3-3) face a skidding Blackwater squad (1-4) on Wednesday. The games will be played at the Ynares Center and the Smart Araneta Coliseum respectively.
The Scores:
Globalport (126) – Glover 26, Romeo 24, Semerad 24, Pringle 15, Yeo 11, Washington 8, Dehesa 8, Kramer 6, Taha 4, Mamaril 0.
Meralco (123) – Durham 55, Faundo 12, Newsome 10, Hodge 9, Caram 8, Uyloan 6, Buenafe 6, Hugnatan 6, Dillinger 4, Nabong 4, Alapag 3, Amer 0, Bono 0.
Quarterscores: 21-24, 52-41, 82-71, 100-100, 114-114, 126-123
