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Fran Yu stars as NorthPort fends off Ginebra in Batangas

Sports | Basketball

Fran Yu stars as NorthPort fends off Ginebra in Batangas

By Reynald I. Magallon

Fran Yu showed that he’s not only ready for the big league but also well armed to compete with the big boys. The former Letran-standout displayed steely nerves in the final frame as NorthPort shut the door on a familiar Barangay Ginebra comeback to come away with a 101-95 victory in the PBA on Tour on Saturday, June 17 at the Batangas City Coliseum.

*Fran Yu provides a huge lift for the NorthPort Batang Pier (PBA Images)

* Yu, a PBA hopeful who was inserted to the NorthPort lineup for the exhibition tiff, dropped three triples and a pair of clutch free throws in the final frame as the Batang Pier kept the Kings at bay to notch their third-straight win after starting with two losses. The 24-year-old playmaker orchestrated the attack for NorthPort with 21 points built on six triples apart from his eight assists. Paul Zamar and JM Calma added 16-points apiece while Arvin Tolentino also contributed 15 points. NorthPort actually bucked a slow start as it stared on a 15-point deficit, 17-32 at the end of the opening frame after a hot start from Ginebra. The Batang Pier turned the tables around in the second quarter when they limited the Kings to a measly nine points in the frame while exploding for 28 to take a 45-41 lead at the half. With Ginebra though hanging tough behind the breakout performance from Jeremiah Gray, NorthPort came through with the big plays down the stretch with Yu along with Tolentino and Zamar joining hands to protect an eight-point cushion in the fourth quarter. Gray put up his best performance in the pre-season tiff with 26 points while Von Pessumal and Jayson David added 16 and 15 respectively – all of which went down the drain as the Kings fell to a 1-3 record.

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