Three of the top four teams—NLEX Road Warriors, Barangay Ginebra San Miguel, and Magnolia Hotshots—were in action on Sunday as the 2024–25 PBA Philippine Cup continued at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. The pair of games caused an even bigger logjam for the top four and eliminated one team outright. Here is what went down:
NLEX Eliminates Phoenix Behind Javee Mocon Takeover
Javee Mocon fired 13 of his 23 points in a searing fourth quarter to power the NLEX Road Warriors to a 105-93 victory over the Phoenix Fuel Masters for their seventh win against two losses.
Mocon’s fourth quarter takeover complemented Robert Bolick’s fine all-around game of 20 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 assists. The former Gilas Pilipinas gunner actually scored 15 of his points right in the very first quarter to stake the Road Warriors to a 40-27 lead early. JB Bahio continued his superb play this conference by chipping in 15, Anthony Semerad added 14, and Xyrus Torres scattered 13 to help NLEX get a step closer to clinching a top four slot.
Jason Perkins scored a game-high 28 for the Fuel Masters, who crashed out of the playoff race with their seventh loss as against only two victories. Ken Tuffin added 17, while Kai Balunggay and Tyler Tio each had 11.
The scores:
NLEX (105) – Mocon 23, Bolick 20, Bahio 15, Semerad 14, Torres 13, Nieto 8, Ramirez 6, Alas 3, Herndon 3
Phoenix (95) – Perkins 28, Tuffin 17, Ballungay 11, Tio 11, Garcia 11, Rivero 6, Camacho 4, Jazul 3, Manganti 2, Ular 2, Cullar 0, Soyud 0, Alejandro 0, Verano 0
Up Next:
NLEX Road Warriors vs. Magnolia Hotshots on June 6 (Ninoy Aquino Stadium)
Phoenix vs. NorthPort Batang Pier on June 4 (PhilSports Arena)
Ginebra Rallies Past Retooled Magnolia for Big Bounce Back
Barangay Ginebra San Miguel bounced back from their sorry loss to the Meralco Bolts by rallying from 10 points down in the fourth quarter to subdue the Magnolia Hotshots, 85-81, in the latest installment of Manila Clasico.
Things looked bleak for Ginebra early in the fourth quarter as they fell behind, 71-61, after a William Navarro triple. But a 13-2 blitz got the crowd favorites back in front at about the halfway mark of the fourth. Then, with Ginebra nursing a slim 80-79 lead, Stephen Holt and Jamie Malonzo clustered five straight points—a Holt lay-up and a Malonzo triple—to give the Barangay breathing room en route to the victory.
Holt and Malonzo scored 14 and 11, respectively, to make up for their terrible showing against Meralco. Japeth Aguilar led the way with 17, followed by Troy Rosario’s 15. RJ Abarrientos added 10. Ian Sangalang and Zavier Lucero scored 16 apiece for the Hotshots, with the former firing 10 of his total in the first quarter alone and the latter scatter half his points in the third.
The scores:
Ginebra (85) – J, Aguilar 17, Rosario 15, Holt 14, Malonzo 11, Abarrientos 10, Thompson 5, David 5, Pinto 4, Adamos 4, Gray 0
Magnolia (81) – Sangalang 16, Lucero 16, Barroca 9, Laput 9, Lastimosa 8, Lee 6, Navarro 5, Dela Rosa 5, Alfaro 4, Dionisio 3
Up Next:
Ginebra vs. TNT Tropang 5G on June 8 (Ninoy Aquino Stadium)
Magnolia vs. NLEX on June 6 (Ninoy Aquino Stadium)
2024–25 PBA Philippine Cup Continues
The 2024–25 PBA Philippine Cup continues on Wednesday at the PhilSports Arena with three eliminated teams in action. The first game will put the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters against the Terrafirma Dyip, while the second game will feature Phoenix taking on NorthPort.
