MANILA: Going up against the tournament heavyweights in the coming days, Barangay Ginebra on Wednesday night made sure that it prepared for them well.
With import Justin Brownlee almost completing a triple-double and his support cast responding all game, the Gin Kings mangled Blackwater, 107-95, for their third straight win in the PBA Governors’ Cup eliminations at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.
“I worried about this one,” Ginebra coach Tim Cone said after his Kings came into the game with their nucleus fresh from participating in the All-Star Week and not being able to turn in as much practice time as he wanted.
“But the guys came out and defended well, passed the ball very well,” Cone went on. “Everybody is passing the ball and it’s been fun to watch them do that.”
Brownlee, who is here subbing for the injured Paul Harris, hit 27 points that went with nine rebounds and eight assists and LA Tenorio and Japeth Aguilar contributed 23 and 19, respectively as the Kings improved to 4-1.
The Elite lost a third consecutive outing and dropped to 1-4, with only idle GlobalPort having a worse record.
Cone was particularly happy about how his Kings dispatched the Elite, who are bannered by one of the better imports in the tournament in NBA veteran Eric Dawson, as Ginebra heads into the meat of its elimination round schedule starting Sunday.
“We will come into a heavy schedule of games where we play San Miguel, Rain or Shine, Star and Mahindra,” Cone explained. “We’ll try to put our best foot forward going into the stretch because everyone wants to beat Ginebra.
“I know that because (when I was coaching other teams), I wanted to beat Ginebra all the time,” Cone stressed with a smile.
The 5-foot-10 Tenorio went on to win Player of the Game honors after also issuing five assists and holding the Gin Kings together practically the whole night.
Dawson, who came from the United States just two days ago after seeking permission from management during the All-Star break because he was feeling homesick, had 26 points, 18 rebounds and seven assists in a mammoth effort that went down the drain for the Elite.
Carlo Lastimosa fired 21 points, rookie Art dela Cruz accounted for 15 and JP Erram 13 for Blackwater, which faces powerhouse tournament leader TNT KaTropa on Saturday practically facing a must-win scenario.
Blackwater actually led after the first period before the Kings methodically gained command.
Meanwhile, Meralco scored the first 16 points in the curtain raiser and found it easy in ripping off-form Rain or Shine, 109-102.
Allen Durham scored 12 points and Chris Newsome eight in the first period as the Bolts erected double-digit leads early to win in coast-to-coast fashion and snap a two-game losing streak.
Meralco, which opened up with two straight victories to be one of the early leaders in the season-ending conference, rose to 3-2, while the Painters took their second loss in as many wins to fall out of the upper half of the standings.
Durham finished with 32 points, 12 rebounds and five assists, leading the Bolts to leads of a big as 26 as Meralco coasted in the fourth quarter.
Five more players scored in twin digits for the Bolts, who will be playing the winless Batang Pier on Sunday as the race for top four berths in the first round of the playoffs intensifies.
With import Justin Brownlee almost completing a triple-double and his support cast responding all game, the Gin Kings mangled Blackwater, 107-95, for their third straight win in the PBA Governors’ Cup eliminations at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.
“I worried about this one,” Ginebra coach Tim Cone said after his Kings came into the game with their nucleus fresh from participating in the All-Star Week and not being able to turn in as much practice time as he wanted.
“But the guys came out and defended well, passed the ball very well,” Cone went on. “Everybody is passing the ball and it’s been fun to watch them do that.”
Brownlee, who is here subbing for the injured Paul Harris, hit 27 points that went with nine rebounds and eight assists and LA Tenorio and Japeth Aguilar contributed 23 and 19, respectively as the Kings improved to 4-1.
The Elite lost a third consecutive outing and dropped to 1-4, with only idle GlobalPort having a worse record.
Cone was particularly happy about how his Kings dispatched the Elite, who are bannered by one of the better imports in the tournament in NBA veteran Eric Dawson, as Ginebra heads into the meat of its elimination round schedule starting Sunday.
“We will come into a heavy schedule of games where we play San Miguel, Rain or Shine, Star and Mahindra,” Cone explained. “We’ll try to put our best foot forward going into the stretch because everyone wants to beat Ginebra.
“I know that because (when I was coaching other teams), I wanted to beat Ginebra all the time,” Cone stressed with a smile.
The 5-foot-10 Tenorio went on to win Player of the Game honors after also issuing five assists and holding the Gin Kings together practically the whole night.
Dawson, who came from the United States just two days ago after seeking permission from management during the All-Star break because he was feeling homesick, had 26 points, 18 rebounds and seven assists in a mammoth effort that went down the drain for the Elite.
Carlo Lastimosa fired 21 points, rookie Art dela Cruz accounted for 15 and JP Erram 13 for Blackwater, which faces powerhouse tournament leader TNT KaTropa on Saturday practically facing a must-win scenario.
Blackwater actually led after the first period before the Kings methodically gained command.
Meanwhile, Meralco scored the first 16 points in the curtain raiser and found it easy in ripping off-form Rain or Shine, 109-102.
Allen Durham scored 12 points and Chris Newsome eight in the first period as the Bolts erected double-digit leads early to win in coast-to-coast fashion and snap a two-game losing streak.
Meralco, which opened up with two straight victories to be one of the early leaders in the season-ending conference, rose to 3-2, while the Painters took their second loss in as many wins to fall out of the upper half of the standings.
Durham finished with 32 points, 12 rebounds and five assists, leading the Bolts to leads of a big as 26 as Meralco coasted in the fourth quarter.
Five more players scored in twin digits for the Bolts, who will be playing the winless Batang Pier on Sunday as the race for top four berths in the first round of the playoffs intensifies.
