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MANILA, Philippines – Brgy. Ginebra San Miguel bagged the top spot in the PLDT Home DSL PBA Philippine Cup after a hard-fought 108-92 victory over Globalport Batang Pier on Friday, January 17 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The league’s frontrunners capitalized on Globalport’s depleted frontline right from the start, going to Japeth Aguilar underneath. The athletic forward scored12 points in the first quarter alone, putting Globalport big men Kelly Nabong and Jondan Salvador into early foul trouble.
The Batang Pier however, made sure it won’t be a walk in the park even without the presence of injured Jay Washington.
Realizing they can’t get things done from the inside, guards Sol Mercado and Terrence Romeo led a run in the second quarter, combining for 18 second quarter points to help Globalport pull within 40-42.
Ginebra then opened the third canto on a 9-2 run highlighted by an Aguilar tomahawk jam, to push the lead up to 67-51. Free throws by Greg Slaughter further widened the gap to Ginebra’s biggest at 77-60.
But the Batang Pier just won’t surrender. Led by Romeo and reserve big man Jewel Ponferrada, Globalport used a spirited 13-2 rally to trim the gap to just six at 73-79 in the closing moments of the third quarter.
From there, both squads traded baskets, but it was Ginebra who got the better of the duel, controlling the match in the final frame.
The twin-tower duo of Aguilar and Slaughter took over in the final 12 minutes as Ginebra outscored Globalport, 28-19 in the fourth to march towards their 11th win in 13 outings.
Slaughter, the no. 1 overall pick in the PBA draft, finished with a career-high 23 points and added 13 rebounds. Aguilar had 21 markers and 8 boards, while LA Tenorio dished out 11 assists to go with his 10 points in the win.
Eric Menk played his best game in a Globalport uniform, carrying the fight for the crestfallen squad with 17 points and 16 rebounds against his former team. Jewel Ponferrada added 16 for the Batang Pier, who dropped to 5-9 in the team standings. – Rappler.com
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