By REYNALD MAGALLON
Barangay Ginebra survived a gritty Phoenix team and came away with a 102-93 victory to stay in the hunt for a playoff spot in the PBA Season 50 Philippine Cup at the UST Quadricentennial Pavilion on Sunday, Nov. 16.
With the Kings in danger of absorbing another setback that could have been a huge blow to their playoff hopes, Troy Rosario and Stephen Holt came to the rescue and delivered big hits down the stretch to shake off the hard-fighting Fuel Masters.
Tied 91-all heading into the final 1:30 of the contest, Rosario showed poise and scored on a stick back to break the deadlock before Holt nailed the dagger trey to make it a 96-91 count with 50 seconds left.
Scottie Thompson was all over the floor with 19 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and three steals while RJ Abarrientos led the way for the Kings in scoring with 25 points.
Holt added 17 points and nine rebounds while Rosario chipped in 14, Jeremiah Grey 13 and Japeth Aguilar 11.
With the win, Ginebra improved to a 3-4 record, good for the eighth spot. The Kings victory also allowed league leaders NLEX Road Warriors and Rain or Shine Elasto Painters to clinch an assured playoff spot.
The Road Warriors earlier took down Titan Ultra, 92-83, behind the 36-point explosion of Robert Bolick.
The veteran playmaker took over in the final frame, firing 17 of his total output including the back-breaking fadeaway trey to beat the shot clock and put the Road Warriors ahead for good against the gritty Giant Risers.
Bolick added 10 assists for another double-double showing to go with his five rebounds and two steals while JB Bahio amply supported him with 20 points and 12 rebounds.
With Titan Ultra refusing to give up and tied the game at 83-all, NLEX clamped down on the defensive end and kept it scoreless in the last 1:16 of the game.
Bolick, meanwhile, took care of the offense, draining the clutch trey before issuing a perfect pass to Dominic Fajardo on the leak out to trigger the 8-0 finishing kick.
With the win, NLEX improved to a 6-2 record to join Rain or Shine on the lead before the league takes a three-week break to give way to the first window of the 2027 FIBA World Cup qualifiers.
