Justin Brownlee’s clutch heroics lift Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings past Meralco Bolts in Game 2 of the PBA Governors’ Cup quarterfinals. –PBA IMAGES
Barangay Ginebra hit all the important shots in the crunch on Saturday night to weather Meralco, 104-103, and seize a commanding lead in their PBA Governors’ Cup quarterfinals series, 2-zip.
Resident import Justin Brownlee hit a contested triple over the outstretched hands of counterpart Allen Durham, to give the Gin Kings the edge they needed to survive the Bolts at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
“Tonight we jumped on the broad shoulders of Justin. We’ve done that many times in the past. But we also have a realization that we can’t do that every night and we have to do better in our next game,” Ginebra coach Tim Cone said.
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“But tonight was Justin’s night. It was amazing. We’ve seen so many games of Justin, winning games down the stretch. And this is another one of them. Top 4 or 5, maybe. The shots he made, the defense he played down the stretch. We had a lot of demands on him tonight and he was up for the challenge, and he took it,” Cone added of his old reliable, who wound up with 39 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three blocks.
Scottie Thompson added 19 points, Maverick Ahanmisi 15, while Japeth Aguilar and rookie RJ Abarrientos both chipped in 11 each as the crowd darlings moved within sniffing range of a semifinals berth.
Meralco had a chance to steal the victory on Cliff Hodge and Allen Durham’s shots but both against the swarming defense of the Gin Kings and the game clock winding down, both muffed their shots.
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Durham had 39 points and 14 rebounds, while Chris Newsome added 23. Hodge put up a valiant 15 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists as the Bolts now try to figure out how to extend the series with their perennial playoff tormentors.
Barangay Ginebra will try to put the series to bed on Monday at Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Malate, Manila.