NorthPort forces rubber match, blasts No. 1 NLEX

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MANILA, Philippines—Twice-to-win NorthPort pounced on NLEX’s early woes on its way to a masterful 115-90 decision in the PBA Governors’ Cup quarterfinals at Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.

“We just came out full of energy. They players didn’t want to go on a vacation just yet. They want to be in the semifinals,” said NorthPort coach Pido Jarencio, whose charges forced a do-or-die duel for a semifinals slot on Wednesday.

“This is only the first half,” he added. “We play the next one in a few days.”

Import Michael Qualls and Christian Standhardinger were once again Batang Pier’s leaders in scoring, tallying 39 and 24 points, respectively.

Skipper Sean Anthony chipped in 12 more in the effort that had the top-ranked Road Warriors in catchup mode the whole night.

JR Quiñahan fired 20 points for NLEX while Kiefer Ravena had 16 and Jericho Cruz added 12.

Manny Harris, the Road Warriors’ high-scoring reinforcement, barely had an impact, accounting for only 12 points on 5-of-15 shooting from the field in 39 minutes of play.

The scores:

NorthPort 115 – Qualls 39, Standhardinger 24, Anthony 12, Ferrer 9, King 8, Escoto 5, Taha 5, Elorde 5, Lanete 3, Cruz 3, Mercado 2.

NLEX 90 – Quinahan 20, Ravena 16, Harris 12, Cruz 11, Erram 6, Soyud 6, Alas 5, Paniamogan 4, Varilla 3, Galanza 3, Ighalo 2, Miranda 2, Fonacier 0.

Quarterscores: 34-24, 61-40, 83-64, 115-90.