Magnolia survived Columbian Dyip’s unrelenting offensive, anchored on four gunners and posted a 118-103 victory that bolstered its playoff chances in the PBA Governors’ Cup on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The crucial win enabled the Hotshots to heave a sigh of relief after their campaign went on an alarming nosedive for losing their previous three outings, including against Barangay Ginebra last Oct. 20 (105-83).
The Hotshots spent the entire first half sizing up their foes before waxing hot in the second half to turn the tables on the Dyip, who surprisingly played inspired basketball all game long.
Romeo Travis, Ian Sangalang, Jio Jalalon, Rome Dela Rosa and Mark Barroca alternated on offense as they got the better of their duels with Columbian’s foursome in CJ Perez, Khapri Alston, Rashawn McCarthy and Juami Tiongson.
Travis cut loose with 28 points, eight rebounds and six assists, Sangalang tallied 24 points, and eight rebounds, with Jalalon finishing with 19 points, nine rebounds and eight assists.
Also instrumental in Magnolia’s win was Barroca, who finished with 10 points, four rebounds and seven assists, aside from providing the much-needed leadership.
The Dyip, who were coming off a 106-104 win over Phoenix last Friday, had four of their gunners becoming a big headache to Magnolia’s defense.
CJ Perez, easily the most consistent among the Dyip, tallied 28 points and eight rebounds, Alston added 26 points and 14 rebounds, while McCarthy had 18 points on top of five rebounds and six assists.
Tiongson was the only other Dyip in double figure with 13 points. However, the four failed to keep the Dyip from tumbling to their fifth loss in nine games.
The scores:
Magnolia 118 – Travis 28, Sangalang 24, Jalalon 19, Dela Rosa 16, Barroca 10, Pingris 8, Herndon 6, Lee 5, Pascual 2, Melton 0.
Columbian 103 – Perez 28, Alston 26, McCarthy 18, Tiongson 13, Cahilig 6, Corpuz 5, Khobuntin 5, Calvo 2, Faundo 0.
Quarterscores: 27-29, 61-52, 88-76, 118-103.