MAGNOLIA survived a serious scare in the endgame before heaving a sigh of relief as it squeaked past gutsy Blackwater, 78-72, for its fifth straight win to earn solo leadership in the 2018 Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City last night.
Ian Sanggalang sank a go-ahead jumper with 56 seconds remaining to give the Hotshots back the lead, 74-72.
Along with key stops, the Hotshots followed up with four more points in the waning seconds to ice the win and keep their winning streak alive.
Magnolia improved to 6-1, eclipsing idle San Miguel (5-1), to grab the tournament lead for the first time and move closer to a berth in the quarterfinals.
Mark Barroca and Aldrech Ramos led the Hotshots with 14 points each.
The Hotshots cruised for most part of the game and it seemed like they were headed to another comfortable finish when they held a sizeable 70-58 advantage with over seven minutes remaining.
However, the Elite did not go down without a fight as they suddenly stormed back into the game, erecting a swift 14-2 blitz to give itself a chance and tie the game at 72-all after a Mac Belo basket with 1:07 remaining.
Still, Magnolia kept its composure as it countered with a decisive 6-0 run in the final minute to escape Blackwater’s upset bullet.
Sanggalang’s key basket enabled Magnolia to regain the edge, while the succeeding points ensured victory.
Wasting no time, Magnolia burst out of the gates with all guns ablaze, immediately zooming to a sizeable 16-4 advantage just seven minutes into play to take control of the contest right away.
The Hotshots even held several 15-point leads in the second period and breezed through until the Elite’s last hoorah in the closing minutes.
The woes continued for the Elite as they have now lost four in a row, dropping to 2-5 for 11th place.
Magnolia missed the services of star guard Paul Lee, who sat out due to an ankle injury. He will remain questionable in the team’s next game against San Miguel.
The scores:
MAGNOLIA HOTSHOTS 78—Ramos 14, Barroca 14, Melton 8, Sangalang 8, Pascual 7, Jalalon 6, Simon 6, Dela Rosa 6, Pingris 4, Herndon 3, Reavis 2, Gamalinda 0, Brondial 0.
BLACKWATER ELITE 72—Belo 25, Maliksi 17, Cortez 8, Erram 6, Jose 4, Pinto 3, DiGregorio 2, Marcelo 2, Sena 2, Sumang 2, Palma 1, Cruz 0, Javier 0.
Quarter scores: 23-13, 42-29, 61-54, 78-72.