At A Glance
- Magnolia leaned on balanced attack and pulled away in the final frame to hand Titan Ultra its second straight defeat, 127-119, in the PBA Season 50 Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Friday, Oct. 17.
Magnolia leaned on balanced attack and pulled away in the final frame to hand Titan Ultra its second straight defeat, 127-119, in the PBA Season 50 Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Friday, Oct. 17.
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.