MANILA – Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings squandered a double-digit lead but managed to secure a 99-92 victory over Meralco Bolts in Game 1 of the PBA Governors’ Cup quarterfinals on Thursday night at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Manila.
After leading by as many as 15 points at 66-51 midway through the third quarter, the Bolts mounted a strong comeback, taking a 78-77 lead with back-to-back baskets from Chris Banchero.
The Gin Kings answered with two triples from Ralph Cu, inside hits from Justin Brownlee and Japeth Aguilar, and a three-pointer from Rhon Jhay Abarrientos to take a 95-85 advantage.
The Bolts made their last push via a split free throw from Chris Newsome and an inside hit from Clifford Hodge, but a layup by Gin Kings’ Earl Scottie Thompson sealed their victory.
Brownlee finished with 29 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists, Thompson added 19 markers, while Stephen Holt and Japeth Aguilar contributed 14 and 10, respectively, as the Gin Kings took a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five quarterfinals series.
Escalante City, Negros Occidental-native Joe Devance also made a brief appearance for the Gin Kings after almost two years, finishing with two points in almost six minutes of action.
Meanwhile, San Miguel Beermen survived an endgame rally by Converge FiberXers for a 102-95 victory in Game 1 of their separate best-of-five quarterfinals series.
Leading by as high as 16 points at 97-81 in the fourth quarter, the Beermen relaxed and allowed the FiberXers to go on a 14-2 scoring blast to cut the deficit to 95-99 with over a minute left.
The Beermen, however, managed to solidify their first win in the series as Ejimofor Anosike knocked down two free throws and Jaymar Perez split his charity shots for a 102-95 advantage.
Anosike debuted with a double-double of 28 points and 11 rebounds, June Mar Fajardo contributed 25 markers and 16 boards, while Perez and Kris Rosales had 11 each for the Beermen./PN
BOX SCORE:
GINEBRA 99 – Brownlee 29, Thompson 19, Holt 14, J. Aguilar 10, Cu 9, Abarrientos 8, Ahanmisi 8, Devance 2, R. Aguilar 0.
MERALCO 92 – Hodge 23, Newsome 20, Durham 17, Banchero 11, Quinto 10, Caram 6, Almazan 5, Rios 0, Mendoza 0, Bates 0, Cansino 0, Jose 0.
Quarterscores: 28-24, 53-43, 73-71, 99-92.
