RJ Abarrientos of Barangay Ginebra tskes a shot. PBA photo
Two in a row for Kings
TWO down, two to go for Barangay Ginebra.
Japeth Aguilar rediscovered his old brilliance as Ginebra repeated over top seed NorthPort, 119-106, to take a 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven semifinal series in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.
.Aguilar, who was named as the “Best Player of the Game” finished with 31 points on 11-of-18 shooting and eight rebounds for the Gin Kings, who dominated the Batang Pier, 35-22 and 33-17, in the first two quarters enroute to another smashing victory.
Jamie Malonzo added 17 points and Scottie Thompson contributed 16 points, four rebounds and three assists for Ginebra, which also dominated NorthPort, 115-93, in the series opener last Wednesday.
Troy Rosario and RJ Abarrientos had 11 points each and import Justin Brownlee added 10 points and 12 assists for the Tim Cone-mentored Kings.
Northport import Kadeem Jack was the a bright spot for the Batang Pier as he finished with 27 points on 11-of-19 shooting, and 10 rebounds in 40 minutes of action.
William Navarro also produced a double-double for coach Bonnie Tan with 23 points and 12 assists, while Joshua Munzon added 14 points and four assists.
Alvin Tolentino, however, was held to only 12 points on 5-of-17 shooting in nearly 40 minutes.
With Aguilar and Malonzo leading the way, Ginebra built a commanding 35-20 lead at the end of the first period.
The lead ballooned to as much as 30 points, 65-35, near the halftime break.
The scores :
Ginebra (119) — J.Aguilar 31, Malonzo 17, Thompson 16, Rosario 11, Abarrientos 11, Brownlee 10, Ahanmisi 8, Holt 7, Gray 6, Pinto 2, Pessumal 0, Cu 0, Adamos 0, R.Aguilar 0, Mariano 0.
Northport (106) — Jack 27, Navarro 23, Munzon 14, Tolentino 12, Bulanadi 10, Nelle 6, Yu 5, Miranda 5, Taha 3, Onwubere 1, Flores 0, Cuntapay 0.
Quarterscores: 35-22, 68-39, 93-67, 119-106.
The results:
Game 1 — Ginebra 115, NorthPort 93.
Game 2 — Ginebra 119, NorthPort 106
(Ginebra leads series, 2-0)
