Abueva Calvin Abueva, the “Beast”, defies the tight defense of three NLEX defenders. PBA photo

Magnolia, Meralco make it

August 2, 2022 Robert Andaya 438 views

MAGNOLIA Chicken Timplados walked the tightrope before beating NLEX, 112-108, in overtime in their sudden death match in the PBA Philippine Cup at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Ian Sangalang finished with a double- double of 24 points and 11 rebounds for the Hotshots ,who earned the right to meet No. 2 seed TNT Tropang Giga in the semis.

Five other players — Paul Lee, Jio Jalalon, Mark Barroca, Calvin Abueva and Rome de la Rosa — also scored in double figures for Magnolia, which finished off NLEX, 2-1, in their best-of-three quarterfinal showdown.

Magnolia also defeated NLEX, 98-89, in the opener, before NLEX levelled the series with a 90-77 victory in the second game.

Lee added 21 points, including a three-pointer which tied the score at 97-all with 12 seconds remaining.

NLEX had a chance to salvage the game but Calvin Oftana turned the ball over with two seconds left.

Jalalon contributed 16 points, seven rebounds and six assists, Barroca had 14 points, Abueva had 13 and De la Rosa had 12 for the Hotshots of coach Chito Victolero.

Oftana led the Road Warriors with 32 points on 10-of-21 shooting on top of nine rebounds.

Don Trollano had 22 and Kevin Alas had 17 in a losing effort.

The other semifinal will pit top seed San Miguel Beer against Meralco, which slammed the door on crowd favorite Barangay, 106-104.

The Bolts squandered a huge 21-point lead but recovered in time to beat their long-time playoff nemesis, the Kings., in their knockout encounter.

Raymond Almazan hit a three-pointer with one minute left to give Meralco the lead — and the win.

The scores:

First game

Magnolia (112) – Sangalang 24, Lee 21, Jalalon 16, Barroca 14, Abueva 13, Dela Rosa 12, Corpuz 6, Dionisio 4, Wong 2,
NLEX (108) – Oftana 32, Trollano 22, Alas 17, Chua 10, Semerad 8, Quinahan 8, Rosales 5, Varilla 2, Nieto 2, Soyud 0.
Quarterscores: 26-30, 51-54, 79-78, 97-97, 112-108

Second game

Meralco (106) – Newsome 21, Black 17, Hodge 13, Maliksi 12, Quinto 11, Almazan 11, Pasaol 11, Banchero 4, Jose 4, Pascual 2
Ginebra (104) – Thompson 26, Standhardinger 23, J.Aguilar 21, Pringle 12, Tenorio 12, Pinto 6, Chan 4, Caperal 0, Onwubere 0, Mariano 0
Quarterscores: 24-18, 55-42, 85-76, 106-104.

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