MANILA, Philippines – Justin Brownlee and Barangay Ginebra sent guest team Bay Area crashing back to earth after a 111-93 rout in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig on Sunday, October 9.

The veteran import dropped a season-high 46 points on top of 12 rebounds and 2 steals for the Gin Kings, who became the first team to beat a Dragons side that had a sterling 4-0 start.

Bay Area reinforcement Andrew Nicholson stood toe-to-toe with Brownlee early as they finished with 26 points each at the end of the first half, which had Ginebra holding a slim 50-48 lead.

The Gin Kings, though, pulled way for good thanks to Brownlee erupting for 18 points in the decisive third quarter that saw his side outscore the Dragons 35-18.

Brownlee ended the third period with a fadeaway three-pointer with less than a minute left as Ginebra enjoyed an 85-66 advantage with a quarter left to play.

Jamie Malonzo delivered 17 points and 6 rebounds in the romp, while Scottie Thompson shone on both end with 8 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 blocks, and 2 steals.

Thompson toyed with Kobey Lam in the third quarter as he picked the pocket of the Bay Area guard in back-to-back possessions, leading to a pair of buckets that gave them a 72-56 lead.

Christian Standhardinger put up a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds for the Gin Kings, who picked up their second straight win after starting the season with a forgettable loss to Rain or Shine.

Nicholson wound up with 28 points and 12 rebounds in his first PBA game as he temporarily replaced fellow Dragons import Myles Powell.

Powell and Nicholson will play four games each before Bay Area decides which player it will use for the rest of the conference.

Glenn Yang had 15 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists in the loss, while Lam netted 13 points.

The Scores

Barangay Ginebra 111 – Brownlee 46, Malonzo 17, Standhardinger 11, Pringle 10, Thompson 8, J. Aguilar 5, Gray 5, Pessumal 3, Onwubere 2, Tenorio 2, Pinto 2, R. Aguilar 0, Mariano 0.

Bay Area 93 – Nicholson 28, Yang 15, Lam 13, Blankley 8, Liu 8, Ewing 8, Si 5, Reid 4, Zhu 2, Zheng 2, Song 0, Liang 0, Ju 0.

Quarters: 26-28, 50-48, 85-66, 111-93

– Rappler.com