The PBA Philippine Cup continued on Saturday with four more teams—San Miguel Beermen, Magnolia Hotshots, Blackwater Bossing, and NLEX Road Warriors—making their tournament debut at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium. Here’s what went down:
Magnolia Routs Blackwater Behind Fast Start, Strong Finish
The Magnolia Hotshots showed they mean business, racing out to a 37-22 lead en route to a 106-84 rout triumph over the Blackwater Bossing.
Rookie Zavier Lucero led five Hotshots who scored at least 13 by firing 21, including 9 in the third quarter, when Magnolia broke the game wide open by outscoring Blackwater 32-20. Ian Sangalang had 15 points, including 8 in the Hotshots’ scorching first quarter, and grabbed 10 boards. Mark Barroca added 14 and Calvin Abueva and Jerom Lastimosa chipped in 13 apiece.
Magnolia’s inspired play spoiled the smashing opening game of Christian David, who led all scorers with 31 points, including 21 in the first half alone. Sedrick Barefield was the only other Bossing in double-figures with 24 points and 7 assists.
The scores:
Magnolia 106 – Lucero 21, Sangalang 15, Barroca 14, Lastimosa 13, Abueva 13, Dela Rosa 8, Lee 7, Dionisio 7, Alfaro 2, Escoto 2, Laput 2, Ahanmisi 2, Reavis 0, Eriobu 0, Balanza 0
Blackwater 84 – David 31, Barefield 24, Casio 6, Tungcab 4, Escoto 4, Ayonayon 4, Mallilin 4, Andrade 2, Guinto 2, Chua 2, Mitchell 1, Jopia 0, Caperal 0, Kwekuteye 0
Up Next:
Magnolia vs. Converge FiberXers on April 9 (Rizal Memorial Coliseum)
Blackwater vs. Converge on April 13 (Ninoy Aquino Stadium)
San Miguel Holds Off NLEX as Juami Tiongson Hits Go-Ahead Triple
Juami Tiongson fired a crucial triple with 90 seconds left to help the San Miguel Beermen hold off the NLEX Road Warriors, 98-89, in what would’ve been a big collapse.
San Miguel opened the game like a house on fire, scoring the first 12 points as it looked primed to blow out the Road Warriors early. The Beermen kept their lead at double-digits for much of the way, only to see NLEX tie things up at 83 behind Robert Bolick’s playmaking. The score was still tied at 85 when Tiongson nailed the go-ahead trey.
Tiongson finished with 17 points on three triples. CJ Perez led the way with a game-high 28 markers spiked by 4 rebounds, 4 assists, and 1 steal. June Mar Fajardo added 13 points, 11 rebounds, and 5 dimes for San Miguel. Bolick had 12 points and 8 assists for NLEX, while Mike Miranda had 15.
The scores:
San Miguel 98 – Perez 28, Tiongson 17, Fajardo 13, Trollano 12, Lassiter 8, Cahilig 6, Tautuaa 6, Teng 6, Brondial 2, Rosales 0, Ross 0
NLEX 89 – Miranda 15, Bolick 12, Mocon 11, Torres 11, Bahio 10, Ramirez 8, Alas 8, Herndon 7, Semerad 3, Valdez 2, Nieto 2
Up Next:
San Miguel vs. Meralco Bolts on April 9 (Rizal Memorial Coliseum)
NLEX Road Warriors vs. Rain or Shine Elasto Painters on April 12 (Ninoy Aquino Stadium)
2024–25 PBA Philippine Cup Continues
The 2024–25 PBA Philippine Cup continues later today with a double-header at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium. Meralco will take on the Terrafirma Dyip in the curtain-raiser, while Converge will face off with the Phoenix Fuel Masters. Meralco and Terrafirma won their opening-day assignments on Friday, while Converge and Phoenix suffered losses.
