PBA D-League: Go for Gold-CSB thumps Batangas-EAC

MANILA, Philippines—Go for Gold-College of St. Benilde lost a big lead but promptly recovered to blast Batangas-Emilio Aguinaldo College, 102-87, in the 2019 PBA D-League Thursday at Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig.

The Scratchers lost their early 17-point lead, 28-11, as the Generals fought back in the second quarter to end the half up 47-41.

This blown lead drew the ire of Scratchers head coach Charles Tiu, who blasted his players for playing lackadaisical basketball.

“I am not happy, we’re up by 17 and they think they’re that great,” said Tiu. “We almost lost this game.”

The two sides went back-and-forth until midway of the fourth quarter until Prince Carlos broke the 84-84 tie with back-to-back three-pointers to give Go for Gold-CSB a 90-94 lead with 5:08 left to play.

Justin Gutang and Roosevelt Adams then took over for the Scratchers in the final minutes.

The Scratchers improved to a 2-3 record for the sixth spot in the Aspirants Group while the Generals dropped to a 1-4 card for the eighth seed.

Gutang led Go for Gold-CSB with 20 points, eight assists, and six steals while Adams had 18 points and 12 rebounds.

Allen Martin had 17 points for Batangas-EAC while Clark Derige added 13 points and seven boards.