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MANILA, Philippines – Sorry Petron, but Ginebra gets the ‘aguinaldo.’
Brgy. Ginebra San Miguel will end the year as the hottest team in the PLDT myDSL PBA Philippine Cup after destroying a depleted Petron Blaze crew, 97-83 in PBA’s Christmas Day slugfest at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.
Japeth Aguilar and Mark Caguioa starred in front of a sellout crowd of at least 20,448 fans – the biggest attendance so far in this conference – as their team moved to the pole of the PBA standings with an 8-1 record.
Aguilar finished with 25 points, 11 rebounds, and 2 blocks while Caguioa added 18 points and 4 rebounds.
“We started the game a bit relaxed maybe because they knew June Mar (Fajardo) isn’t around. I reminded them to stick to our game plan. Our defense did it,” said Ginebra head coach Ato Agustin, who said this win is his Christmas gift to the fans.
Ginebra failed to capitalize on June Mar Fajardo’s presence from the inside, but bombed Petron with numerous outside shots. Mac baracael hit two triples while Josh Urbiztondo added one as Ginebra raced to a 36-22 lead early in the second period.
However, the Boosters erased that gap with a mighty run that knotted the score at 42-all before Ginebra managed to carry over a 47-42 lead heading into the second half.
Japeth Aguilar then took over in the third quarter, using his aggressiveness and athleticism to score. The high-flying forward scored 12 markers in the penultimate period, but Petron was able to keep it close before entering the fourth quarter, 71-63.
The Boosters started to lose steam in the final canto and struggled without June Mar Fajardo’s presence, who is averaging 15.5 points and 17.3 boards. Mark Caguioa poured 10 points in the final 12 minutes as Ginebra rolled for their eighth win.
After winning seven straight, Petron Blaze has now dropped two consecutive games to slip to 7-2.
The scores:
Ginebra (97) – Aguilar 25, Caguioa 18, Slaughter 17, Baracael 11, Ellis 8, Reyes 7, Urbiztondo 7, Monfort 3, Forrester 1, Ababou 0, Helterbrand 0, Tenorio 0, Faundo 0.
Petron (83) – Santos 22, Lutz 15, Ross 14, Kramer 11, Cabagnot 7, Lassiter 5, Lanete 4, Hubalde 4, Taha 1, Duncil 0, Tubid 0, Deutchman 0.
Quarters: 28-19, 47-42, 71-63, 97-83
– with reports from Levi Verora/Rappler.com
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