By REYNALD MAGALLON
Meralco gave Barangay Ginebra a dose of its own medicine, charging back from a 16-point deficit to pick up a hard-earned 89-75 victory for back-to-back wins in the PBA Season 50 Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
CJ Cansino kept the Bolts within striking distance before Chris Newsome spearheaded a huge fourth quarter effort for Meralco which outscored the Kings, 33-15, to complete the turnaround.
Newsome unloaded 14 of his 19 points in the second half – none bigger than a booming left corner triple and a drive to the basket that gave the Bolts the lead for good, 69-68, halfway through the payoff period.
Cansino chipped in 18 points while Bong Quinto scored all but one of his 11 points the final frame as the Bolts finally evened their record 2-2 after dropping their first two games.
Brandon Bates was also solid after hauling down 17 rebounds to go with his six points to help give Meralco the much-needed morale boost heading into their third game in six days when the Bolts take on the Magnolia Hotshots on Sunday, Oct. 19.
RJ Abarrientos had 14 points while Japeth Aguilar and Stephen Holt had 13 and 12 for the Kings who failed to sustain their strong first half showing.
Meanwhile, Magnolia leaned on balanced attack and pulled away in the final frame to hand Titan Ultra its second straight defeat, 127-119.
The Hotshots tightened up their defensive screws in the payoff period to fuel a back-breaking 13-0 run that allowed the team to create the much-needed separation against the hard-fighting Giant Risers.
Holding onto a slim 92-88 lead heading into the fourth, Magnolia broke the game wide open and seized 119-98 spread with a little over two minutes left in the game.
Zavier Lucero anchored the Hotshots on both ends of the floor, chalking up a double-double of 23 points and 17 rebounds to go with four assists and a block.
He led five other Magnolia players in double figures with Ian Sangalang adding 21 points and Mark Barroca orchestrating the assault with 16 points and seven assists.
Russel Escoto also provided quality minutes off the bench with 16 while Javi Gomez de Liano and Jerom Lastimosa had 14 and 13 respectively.
MAGNOLIA 127 – Lucero 23, Sanagalang 21, Barroca 16, escoto 16, Gomez de Liano 14, Lastimosa 13, Dela Rosa 9, Alfaro 7, Laput 4, Verano 2, Dionisio 2, Lee 0, Eriobu 0, Taha 0, Gomez 0
TITAN 119 – Munzon 28, Ular 17, Balanza 14, Pessumnal 13, Koon 12, Cuntapay 10, Sumang 9, Yu 6, Ambohot 6, Flores 4, Melecio 0, Martinez 0
QUARTERS: 27-22, 58-56, 92-88, 127-119
