Justin Arana is making a statement—and the Converge FiberXers are making a run.
The FiberXers big man delivered back-to-back 30-10 performances to start the PBA Governors’ Cup, earning the PBA Press Corps’ unanimous Player of the Week citation for the period July 14-19 as Converge raced to a 3-0 record and a share of the Group A lead with the NLEX Road Warriors.
Arana posted 31 points and 10 rebounds in Converge’s 105-103 win over the Terrafirma Dyip, then turned it up a notch against the Macau Giant Pandas—dropping a career-high 39 markers to go with 12 boards in a 149-124 blowout. The 39-point performance set a new franchise scoring record for a local player, surpassing the previous mark of 36 set by Alec Stockton against the San Miguel Beermen in the 2024 Philippine Cup, according to PBA stats chief Fidel Mangonon III. Arana also joined Stockton as the only homegrown FiberXers to score consecutive 30-point games in franchise history.
Justin Arana Downplays Spectacular Showings as Nothing Special
For all the brilliance on display, Arana was characteristically understated about what is driving it.
“Wala namang special,” he said when asked about his explosive start to the conference. “Siyempre, ‘yun nga, kina-counter ko lang kung ano’ng depensa ang binibigay sa akin and luckily, pumapasok mga tira so thankful ako.”
The 6-foot-7 fourth-year slotman beat out Phoenix Fuel Masters guard Ricci Rivero and TNT Tropang 5G guard Rey Nambatac for the weekly citation.
Winning Is What Matters for Justin Arana
Beneath the individual numbers, though, runs a collective motivation that has been fuelling the entire Converge squad. The FiberXers missed the playoffs in the Commissioner’s Cup—a failure that clearly left a mark on the group—and the hunger to atone for that disappointment has carried over into a focused, determined Governors’ Cup start.
“Ginagawa lang talaga namin, binibigay lang namin ang 100 percent. Talagang pinagtatrabahuhan namin, ayaw talaga naming maulit ‘yung last conference kaya nagtutulong-tulong kami,” Arana said.
Three wins. Zero losses. A share of the Group A lead. Converge’s redemption tour is off to exactly the kind of start they needed—and Justin Arana, career-high and all, is leading the charge.
