NORTHPORT Batang Pier rallied from a 15-point deficit to roll back hardluck Terrafirma, 91-85, and boost their chances in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City.

Arvin Tolentino played the game of his life as he finished with a double double of 31 points on 9-of-16 shooting and 12 rebounds to power the Batang Pier to their fifth win against the same number of losses.

Tolentino’s explosive offensive performance included five triples for the Batang Pier of coach Pido Jarencio.

Robert Bolick and William Navarro added 12 points apiece and import Prince Ibeh contributed nine points and a team-high 17 rebounds.

Lester Prosper led Terrafirma with 23 points, 18 rebounds and three assists in 43 minutes of action.

Prosper’s efforts were not enough, however, as the Dyip fell to 0-9 overall.

Juami Tiongson had 18 points and seven assists while veteran Alex Cabagnot added 16 points, five rebounds and three assist for coach Johnedel Cardel.

Overshadowed by NorthPort’s victory was Magnolia, which outplayed phoenix Super LPG, 90-80, to tighten its hold on first place.

Import Nick Racocevic finished with 28 points and 18 rebounds and five other players turned in double-digit scores in Magnolia’s seventh win in eight outings.

Meanwhile, Bay Area Dragons and Converge FiberX look to boost their chances for the top two seats in the next round when they take on NLEX and Rain or Shine, respectively.

The Dragons, who looked deadly as ever with Myles Powell back in the line-up, gun for win No.8 when they take on the struggling Road Warriors in the 4:30 curtainraiser.

Powell celebrated his return to the Bay Area line-up as he scored for a conference-high 50 points, including 11 of 17 shooting from the three-point area, in the Dragons’ 120-87 victory over the Elasto Painters last Friday.

Bay Area coach Brian Goorjian hopes to get the same high-scoring game from Powell in the game against NLEX as they seek a top two finish in the eliminations and a win-once advantage over a lower- ranked opponent in the eight-team quarterfinals.

“There’s a huge advantage at finishing at the top two… so we’re gonna do everything we can to try to get that top two position,” said Goorjian, whose team is tied with Converge at 7-2 behind only Magnolia’s 7-1 record.

But while Bay Area is setting its sights on a top two finish, the Road Warriors of coach Frankie Lim are hard-pressed to win all their own remaining four games to possibnly get them through the quarterfinals.

Lim, however, knows the big task at hand, especially with the continued absence of key players Tony Semerad and JR Quinahan due to surgery and Don Trollano due to health and safety protocols that caused him to miss the last two games.

Converge is also hoping to extend its six-game winning streak when it battles Rain or Shine at 6:45 p.m.

Focus of attention is the battle between imports Quincy Miller of Converge and Ryan Pearson of Rain or Shine.

Pearson, who replaced Steve Taylor as import, had a forgettable debut with only nine points against the Dragons’ imposing defense.

The scores:

Northport (91) – Tolentino 31, Bolick 12, Navarro 12, Ibeh 9, Sumang 7, Balanza 6, Ferrer 5, Ayaay 4, Salado 3, Chan 2, Taha 0
Terrafirma (85) – Prosper 23, Tiongson 18, Cabagnot 16, Alolino 8, Ramos 8, Munzon 5, Calvo 3, Cahilig 2, Javelona 2, Camson 0, Gabayni 0, Gomez de Liano 0
Quarterscores: 20-28, 45-55, 64-71, 91-85.

Second game

Magnolia (90) – Rakocevic 18, Abueva 15, Jalalon 12, Barroca 11, Lee 10, Sangalang 10, Dela Rosa 8, Wong 4, Dionisio 2, Corpuz 0, Ahanmisi 0.
Phoenix (80) – Anthony 17, Jazul 11, Mocon 10, Wesson 9, Tio 7, Manganti 5, Rios 5, Perkins 4, Camacho 4, Garcia 3, Adamos 3, Robles 2, Pascual 0, Serrano 0.
Quarterscores: 27-18, 50-36, 76-66, 90-80.