MANILA – Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings made their way to the 2024-25 PBA Commissioner’s Cup finals after a 126-99 victory over the NorthPort Batang Pier in Game 5 of the semifinals at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Rhon Jay Abarrientos tallied a double-double of 20 points and 10 assists to go with four rebounds and two steals to be named Player of the Game as the Gin Kings wrapped up the series at 4-1.
“’Yung pagkatalo namin (nung Game 3) ‘yun ‘yung parang boost sa amin para sa game na ito,” Abarrientos said in a post-game interview. “‘Yung pagkatalo na ‘yun, kailangan namin ‘yung going into the Finals.”
“Siguro, nag step-up lang kami lahat in this game like in our previous games. Hindi naman kami nag-settle dun sa pagkatalo namin eh, pinag-usapan lang namin na ‘yung maging mindset namin is one game at a time,” he added.
Justin Brownlee led the way with a double-double of 21 points and 11 rebounds, Jamie Malonzo added 20 markers, while Japeth Aguilar, Earl Scottie Thompson, and Jeth Troy Rosario had 18, 14, and 11 markers, respectively, for Ginebra.
Holding to a slim 23-22 lead after the opening quarter, the Gin Kings started to pull away in the second period behind Brownlee, Rosario, and Maverick Ahanmisi for a 62-53 halftime advantage.
The Gin Kings continued their run in the second half with connections from Abarrientos, Aguilar, and Brownlee as the lead reached its largest at 31 points at 91-60 late in the third quarter.
This is the Gin Kings’ 32nd PBA Finals appearance overall, and head coach Tim Cone’s 40th time to coach in the championship round.
Kadeem Jack top-scored for the Batang Pier with 31 points, Allyn Bulanadi added 26 markers, including six three-point conversions, while Joshua Munzon and Juan Paolo Taha had 12 and 10 points, respectively.
Game 1 of the best-of-seven championship series between the Gin Kings and the TNT Tropang Giga will commence on Friday, March 14, at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City./PN
BOX SCORE:
GINEBRA 126 – Brownlee 21, Abarrientos 20, Malonzo 20, J. Aguilar 18, Thompson 14, Rosario 11, Ahanmisi 9, Holt 7, Mariano 2, Pinto 2, Adamos 2, Cu 0, Pessumal 0, R. Aguilar 0.
NORTHPORT 99 – Jack 31, Bulanadi 26, Munzon 12, Taha 10, Tolentino 9, Navarro 9, Onwubere 2, Nelle 0, Flores 0, Cuntapay 0.
Quarterscores: 23-22, 62-53, 97-76, 126-99.
