Magnolia ends slump, stops Ginebra’s streak in ‘Bubble Clasico’

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MANILA, Philippines — Magnolia got hot at the right time and buried Barangay Ginebra in the final quarter en route to a 102-92 win in the PBA Philippine Cup Sunday at Angeles University Foundation.

The Hotshots trailed the Gin Kings 72-64 late in the third but chipped away at the lead after outscoring Ginebra 25-14 in the fourth.

Chris Banchero capped Magnolia’s 20-7 run for the Hotshots’ 84-79 lead three minutes into the fourth.

Mark Barroca then drilled the three-point dagger with 25 seconds left to play to give Magnolia the 102-89 lead.

Head coach Chito Victolero said the win over Ginebra was a crucial one for the Hotshots as they avoided getting into a disastrous 1-5 hole.

“This was a breakout game for us because we’re in a do-or-die situation because we’re 1-4 and we need to bounce back, it just so happened that we faced Ginebra,” said Victolero in Filipino as his team improved to 2-4.

“We could’ve won our previous games but in the last two or three minutes we just falter and at the same time we couldn’t get the breaks.”

Magnolia lost to Phoenix 91-84 in its previous game that saw the Fuel Masters go on a 22-0 run in the fourth while its loss to Meralco was a close one at 109-104.

Jackson Corpuz broke out with 20 points and six rebounds to lead the Hotshots, who won their first Manila Clasico game after four elimination round matchups against the Gin Kings.

Paul Lee and Barroca had 15 points apiece while Ian Sangalang added 14 points and eight rebounds for Magnolia.

Stanley Pringle had a game-high 24 points to lead the Gin Kings, who saw their four-game winning streak snapped as they drop to 4-1.