Barangay Ginebra is the first team through to the semifinals. The Gin Kings clicked on all cylinders as they finished off Magnolia, 106-80, to complete a 2-0 sweep in Game 2 of their best-of-three quarterfinal series in the 2019 Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner’s Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum Tuesday night.
Justin Brownlee elevated his game to greater heights once again, scoring 16 of his game-high 30 points with nine rebounds and six assists in the third canto to instantly lead Ginebra to the next round.
Japeth Aguilar added 18 points, LA Tenorio had 13, Mark Caguioa scored 12 and Stanley Pringle hit 11 in a balanced show of offensive force by the Gin Kings.
The defending champions will now look ahead in the semis as they will face the winner of the TNT-Alaska series, where a deciding knockout game was scheduled to be played Tuesday.
“It’s always good to be back in the semifinals. We worked hard for this and beating Magnolia to return the favor is a blessing for us,” said Brownlee.
A 40-point explosion from Ginebra in the third quarter completely closed out the show for Magnolia.
From carrying just an eight-point lead, at the half, the Gin Kings manhandled the Hotshots in the third to take a whopping 87-60 cushion heading into the final 12 minutes of play, breaking the game wide open.
In that fruitful third frame alone, Ginebra dished out 13 assists as its offense was completely in-sync.
Ginebra started gaining steam late in the second, erecting a 9-2 run to end the first half to have a good lead to work on by intermission.
That ignited an even bigger onslaught in the second half.
After eliminating the Gin Kings in the last two conferences in the same stage, the Hotshots suffered the same fate as the tides were turned.
Magnolia lost its last five games and will now exit the conference.
The Hotshots, who were practically out of the game by the middle of the third, were led by Mark Barroca’s team-high 17 points.
The scores:
Ginebra 106—Brownlee 30, J. Aguilar 18, Tenorio 13, Caguioa 12, Pringle 11, Thompson 9, Devance 4, Slaughter 4, Teodoro 3, Mariano 2, Caperal 0, R. Aguilar 0.
Magnolia 80—Barroca 17, Christmas 15, Sangalang 12, Jalalon 8, Reavis 8, Lee 5, Herndon 5, Dela Rosa 3, Abundo 3, Simon 2, Gamalinda 0, Ramos 0, Melton 0, Pascual 0.
Quarterscores: 24-23, 47-39, 87-60, 106-80
