It seems the ghost of the 2019 Governors’ Cup finals continue to haunt the the Meralco Bolts.
Barangay Ginebra San Miguel continues to assert its mastery over the Bolts by hacking out a 96-79 win tonight at the Angeles University Foundation Sports Arena and Cultural Center in Angeles, Pampanga.
After a close first quarter, the Gin Kings stepped on the gas starting from the second quarter and never looked back, posting 20-plus leads on several occasions.
By the middle of the fourth, the Kings went on cruise control mode as its pulled its starters one after the other to give way to rookies like Kent Salado and Jerrick Balanza, and even seldom-used Raymond Aguilar.
It was a total team effort for the Gin Kings both in offense and defense. The team also shot a decent 39 of 81 attempts from the field for a 48-percent clip, with 17 dimes and a whopping 53 rebounds, compared to the Bolts’ shooting 39 percent field goals, 36 rebounds and 12 assists.
“It was a great team game, I think. Having a twice-to-beat advantage gave us time to rest and practice, which worked very well for us coming into this game,” explains Gin Kings’ coach Tim Cone.
Stanley Pringle, voted Best Player of the Game, topscored for the Gin Kings with 19 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals for another magnificent performance. Providing able support were Scottie Thompson and rookie Arvin Tolentino, who had 13 apiece, while LA Tenorio chipped in 11 points.
Allein Maliksi paced the Bolts with 24 points while Chris Newsome had 13, Reynel Hugnatan with 9 and Aaron Black with 8.
The first game was totally different as TNT Tropang Giga relied on the late-game heroics of their superstar guard Jayson Castro to eke out a hard-earned 95-92 win against a determined Phoenix Super LPG in the other semis opener.
Asia’s Best Point Guard Castro, though still not playing at 100 percent, carried his team on his shoulders. Castro led the TNT side with 21 points, followed by Bobby Ray Parks with 17 markers.
RJ Jazul scored 21 points while jason Perkins added 15 markers and 10 rebounds. The team sorely missed its main man Matthew Wright who twisted his right ankle and did not return to play.
Game 2 is on Friday, November 20, with the Bolts colliding with the Gin Kings at 3:45 p.m. while the Tropang Giga tangles with Phoenix at 6:30 p.m.
(Photo credits: pba.ph)