By JAY R. GOTERA
MANILA — The Barangay Ginebra Kings clawed their way back from a 17-point deficit to beat the Alaska Aces, 85-81, Sunday night, forcing a knockout match Tuesday for a semifinals slot in the 2017 PBA Philippine Cup.
With Ginebra down 37-50 early in the third quarter, Sol Mercado suddenly caught fire as he sparked a devastating 25-4 run, giving the never-say-die Kings a 62-54 lead.
The Aces fought back in the final quarter, cutting Ginebra’s lead to three points, 84-81, but could go no further as LA Tenorio sealed the win for the Kings with a free throw.
Tenorio was Ginebra’s top scorer with 16 points, 15 of them scored in the second half. He also tallied six assists and two rebounds.
Japeth Aguilar finished with 15 points and 14 boards, while Scottie Thompson also had a double-double of 15 markers and 10 rebounds.
Mercado added 12 points, all scored during Ginebra’s overpowering third-quarter run. Joe Devance chipped in 10 points, all scored in the first half, before he suffered a serious foot injury that sent him to the locker room for the duration of the contest.
Calvin Abueva led Alaska with 20 points and 10 rebounds, while JVee Casio added 16 markers.
Ginebra and Alaska square off anew this Tuesday, with the winner facing the winner of the Star-Phoenix quarterfinals series.
San Miguel Beer 98, Rain or Shine 91
The top-seeded San Miguel Beer found a new scoring machine as RR Garcia came off the bench to lead the defending champions to a resounding 98-91 victory over the eighth seed Rain or Shine Elasto Painters.
SMB thus advances to the semifinals of the Philippine Cup even as the Painters kissed their conference hopes goodbye.
Acquired by SMB in the last season, Garcia played his best game yet for his new team, banging in 25 points, including five three-pointers. He also tallied four rebounds and three assists as the Beermen extended their winning run to 10 straight games.
Reigning MVP June Mar Fajardo flexed just enough muscle to come up with a double-double 14 markers and 14 boards.
Chris Ross added 13 points, four rebounds, and four assists. Arwind Santos posted 13 markers and 12 boards, while Marcio Lassiter finished with 11 points and five rebounds.
But it was Garcia who sparked the SMB run in the third quarter as the Beermen pulled away.
The Painters made one last push, cutting a 16-point SMB lead to just five, 91-86 with 1:10 remaining. But Santos fired two clutch baskets to finally shut off the lights for ROS.
Beau Belga led Rain or Shine with 18 points and four rebounds, while Jay Washington finished with 16 markers and eight boards in a losing effort.
SMB now faces the winner of the TNT-GlobalPort matchup in a best-of-seven semifinals series.
Games Monday (Quarterfinals, best-of-3): Star Hotshots vs. Phoenix Fuel Masters (Star leads 1-0) and TNT KaTropa vs. GlobalPort Batang Pier (TNT KaTropa leads 1-0).
