MANILA – Rhon Jay Abarrientos converted timely free throws in the endgame as Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings escaped with a 91-87 win over Meralco Bolts in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup on Wednesday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
After seeing their 17-point lead cut to 84-87 by a layup by Bolts’ Jansen Rios, Abarrientos calmly knocked down two free throws to increase the Gin Kings’ lead to 89-84 with 1:30 left in the game.
The Bolts made their last push at 87-89 via a three-pointer from Aaron Black with 30 seconds remaining, but Abarrientos connected two more free throws for a 91-87 lead by Ginebra.
Abarrientos finished with 17 points, three rebounds, two assists, and a steal to lead the Gin Kings, which concluded their elimination round campaign with an 8-4 win-loss record.
Justin Brownlee chipped in 15 points, five rebounds, and five assists in only 22 minutes of action, while Jeth Troy Rosario and Stephen Holt ended with 13 markers apiece for Ginebra.
Gin Kings head coach Tim Cone said his decision to rely on his bench players Raymond Aguilar, Von Pessumal, Aljon Mariano, Ralph Cu, and LA Tenorio for almost the entire fourth quarter was for them to be ready for the playoffs.
“This game is more on an opportunity for us to get ready for the playoffs, we want to make sure that guys who are not getting a lot of minutes will have an opportunity to play because you don’t know what’s gonna happen in the playoffs,” Cone said.
“You don’t want your starters or your core players to get injured in a game like this, and I want those guys who are not getting a lot of minutes to stay sharp in case if something happens in the playoffs,” he added.
CJ Cansino finished with 15 points, Raymond Almazan added a double-double of 13 points and 13 rebounds, while Black contributed 11 markers for the Bolts (7-4), which played without import Akil Mitchell due to back spasms.
Meanwhile, NLEX Road Warriors (6-6) moved closer to securing a quarterfinals slot after a 94-76 rout over Hong Kong Eastern (7-5). Michael Watkins finished with a double-double of 41 points and 14 rebounds to lead NLEX./PN
BOX SCORE:
GINEBRA 91 – Abarrientos 17, Brownlee 15, Holt 13, Rosario 13, Malonzo 9, Pessumal 7, Ahanmisi 6, J. Aguilar 4, Thompson 2, Pinto 2, R. Aguilar 2, Pinto 1, Cu 0, Mariano 0.
MERALCO 87 – Cansino 15, Almazan 13, Black 11, Newsome 9, Hodge 9, Quinto 8, Torres 5, Rios 5, Bates 4, Banchero 4, Pasaol 4, Reyson 0.
Quarterscores: 21-22, 44-42, 68-57, 91-87.
