| 𝗩𝗶𝗮 𝗞𝗵𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗔𝗴𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻
Barangay Ginebra shook off a rusty start and escaped with a gritty 73-71 win over the San Miguel Beermen in Game 1 of the PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup semifinals on June 25 at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
Scottie Thompson took over down the stretch, pouring in 7 crucial points in the last three minutes, including a tough layup and a clutch jumper to seal the win and slam the door on any San Miguel comeback.
Japeth Aguilar led the charge with 18 points and 9 rebounds, while Thompson, who was named Best Player of the Game, added 16 points and anchored Ginebra’s finishing kick.
“The good news is we just battled tonight. We didn’t play great, we didn’t shoot great, we didn’t even really defend that great, but we found a way,” said Coach Tim Cone in a postgame interview.
On the other hand, Beermen’s defense fell apart in the crunch time, as superstar center June Mar Fajardo’s fourth-quarter exit due to a calf injury left a gaping hole inside the paint.
It was the Beermen who controlled the pace early, building a commanding 15-point lead at halftime, 43-28, controlling every possession to set up shifty plays behind CJ Perez.
But Ginebra refused to wave the white flag—slowly chipping away at the deficit and gaining momentum heading into the final quarter.
Ginebra mounted a late-game rally, swinging the momentum in their favor as Troy Rosario came up clutch at the line, as his free throws gave them the lead with 1:21 remaining, flipping the script when it mattered most.
Perez powered the Beermen with 26 points on top of seven rebounds, while Juami Tiongson and Jericho Cruz added 12 points, respectively.
The Gin Kings will try to continue their winning ways in game 2 of the best-of-seven match this Friday.
