Romeo, Pringle play heroes as GlobalPort survives Mahindra in OT

Naveen Ganglani

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Romeo, Pringle play heroes as GlobalPort survives Mahindra in OT
Pringle and Romeo deliver in the clutch to lead GlobalPort over Mahindra

MANILA, Philippines – Stanley Pringle was brilliant all around, Terrence Romeo turned from goat to hero in the final seconds, and the two PBA stars hit critical shots down the stretch of regulation and overtime to lead the GlobalPort Batang Pier past the Mahindra Enforcers in a thriller, 118-116, on Saturday, December 12, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Romeo struggled from the field as he finished shooting 5-of-22, but two of those field goals came during the dying seconds of overtime and proved to be the difference in the contest.

The Gilas standout recorded 29 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 assists, plus shot 18-of-21 from the foul stripe, while his co-pilot, Pringle, hit a huge step-back jumper to send the game to OT and finished with 29 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 assists.

Playing without LA Revilla, Mahindra was led by Aldrech Ramos’ 24 points and 4 boards, while Karl Dehesa had 23 points, 8 assists, and 4 rebounds. Rookie Mike Digregorio also played well, posting 14 points and 12 boards off the bench.

The win was the Batang Pier’s fourth in a row as they improved to 7-3, which clinches at least a twice-to-beat seed in the quarterfinal round of the playoffs, while the Enforcers lost their third straight and dropped to 2-8.

It was a close game down the stretch as the scoreboard displayed 97-all with 2:08 to go. Pringle then hit a shot to give his team a two-point lead, but Dehesa answered with a triple to put Mahindra ahead 100-99.

After GlobalPort big man Billy Mamaril hit a bank shot to put his team up one, Dehesa was fouled and converted two charities. Romeo then missed two jumpers and Mahindra big Bradwyn Guinto obtained a rebound, but after getting fouled, he split his visit to the line.

With 10 seconds left, Romeo handed the ball to Pringle and he attacked the paint, but then step-backed and took a fadeaway that went in and tied the contest at 103 with no time left on the clock.

Mahindra once again looked like they had the game won when they went up 111-105 with 2:38 left in OT, but 3 free throws by Romeo off a foul and a Mamaril put-back cut the deficit to one with 2:05 to go.

Ramos then hit a huge jumper to extend the lead to 3, and after Romeo missed two more triples, Digregorio hit a tough shot over Romeo to make it a 5-point game anew.

Off a time-out, veteran Jay Washington converted a 3-pointer with 48 seconds left. After Kyle Pascual split his free throws, Romeo, who was 0-of-13 from outside, hit a tough 3-pointer to tie the contest at 116 with 29 seconds to go.

On the next play, Dehesa misfired on a contested triple, giving GlobalPort a chance to win at the buzzer. They went to Romeo, and he used a crossover to elude his defender and slice to the rim for an uncontested layup. With a second left, John Pinto missed a hail mary from near halfcourt, sealing his team’s defeat.

The Batang Pier have a remaining game against the Tropang Texters before the postseason starts, while the Enforcers will fight for their playoff lives against the Elite.

Scores:

GlobalPort (118): Pringle 29, Romeo 29, Mamaril 12, Washington 12, Yeo 11, Kramer 10, Semerad 7, Maierhofer 6, Uyloan 2, Pena 0, Sumang 0.

Mahindra (116): Ramos 24, Dehesa 23, Digregorio 19, Yee 14, Guinto 11, Pascual 9, Canaleta 6, Laure 5, Pinto 4, Bagatsing 1, Hubalde 0.

Quarter scores: 23-22, 44-49, 79-72, 103-103, 118-116 – Rappler.com

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