Meralco held Barangay Ginebra without any field goal in the last four minutes to hack out an 82-73 victory and secure a spot in the quarterfinals of the PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Friday, May 30.
Meralco rides strong finishing kick to frustrate Ginebra, clinch quarters berth
At A Glance
- Meralco held Barangay Ginebra without any field goal in the last four minutes to hack out an 82-73 victory and secure a spot in the quarterfinals of the PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Friday, May 30.
The Bolts banked on their stifling defense in the waning minutes to fuel a strong 9-2 finishing kick that handed them their third straight victory and, most importantly, win No. 6 which should be enough for Meralco to reach the next round.
From a 71-all deadlock with four minutes left, Meralco pulled off consecutive defensive stops as Ginebra failed to score until the final 38 seconds when Jamie Malonzo scored two free throws.
That, however, already came a little too late as Chris Banchero, Chris Newsome, Cliff Hodge and Bong Quinto all contributed in the telling run in the dying minutes.
Newsome finished with 15 points and six rebounds to go with two blocks and a steal while Banchero added 14. Cliff Hodge added 11 points and 13 rebounds while Quinto and CJ Cansino had 10 apiece for Meralco which finished the eliminations with a 6-5 record.
Scottie Thompson and Jamie Malonzo led the way with 16 apiece for Ginebra which ended the contest without head coach Tim Cone after being called for two technical fouls during Meralco's final run.