MANILA, Philippines – Barangay Ginebra showcased its championship pedigree by dragging Meralco to a do-or-die clash with a 94-87 win in the PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinals at the FilOil EcoOil in San Juan on Friday, July 29.

Scottie Thompson and Stanley Pringle delivered the winning plays as the Gin Kings beat the Bolts for the first time this season to knot the best-of-three affair at 1-1 and stay in the hunt in their bid to reclaim the All-Filipino crown.

Churning out 11 points, 9 assists, and 6 rebounds, Thompson came up with a clutch steal and back-to-back dimes to Christian Standhardinger and Japeth Aguilar that helped his side prop up an 89-82 lead with two minutes left.

Pringle then scored 5 straight points off a layup and a triple in the final 1:30 minutes as Ginebra closed all comeback doors on Meralco.

Aguilar led the Gin Kings in scoring with 25 points on top of 8 rebounds and 5 blocks, while Standhardinger put up 15 points, 12 rebounds, and 7 assists as they bounced back from their subpar Game 1 performances.

In their 93-82 loss in Game 1, Aguilar and Standhardinger combined for only 22 points and 9 rebounds.

LA Tenorio also rose to the occasion for the Gin Kings after going scoreless in Game 1 as he netted 13 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals.

Pringle finished with 9 points, while Jeff Chan and John Pinto added 8 and 7 points, respectively, in the nail-biter.

Cliff Hodge fired a career-high 25 points to go with 5 assists and 2 steals for the Bolts, who led 71-69 after three quarters but played catchup in the final frame.

The Scores

Barangay Ginebra 94 – J. Aguilar 25, Standhardinger 15, Tenorio 13, Thompson 11, Pringle 9, Chan 8, Pinto 7, Caperal 4, Mariano 2.

Meralco 87 – Hodge 25, Maliksi 14, Pasaol 14, Black 9, Newsome 8, Pascual 3, Banchero 2, Quinto 2.

Quarters: 25-25, 56-45, 69-71, 94-87.

– Rappler.com