POWERED by the five-star performance of Maverick Ahanmisi, Barangay Ginebra wheeled back on track with a 107-102 win over Rain or Shine in the PBA Commissioner's Cup Friday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Making an immediate impact in his maiden conference, Ahanmisi delivered a near triple-double game of 21 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists as the Gin Kings chalked up a quick bounceback to their sorry meltdown in a 91-93 loss to Magnolia Sunday.
Ahanmisi was on-target from deep, going five of seven with his last long bomb giving Ginebra a 103-99 cushion.
"That was the shot of the game," coach Tim Cone gushed about Ahanmisi's booming trey, which was perfectly set up by Scottie Thompson against the zone.
"It was his (Ahanmisi) shots that kept us in the game (after ROS seized an early lead) and kept us in the lead for most of the game."
Sponsored content: Ahanmisi also grabbed a crucial defensive rebound off a miss by Gabe Norwood then threw an outlet to Christian Standhardinger for the insurance layup.
Import Tony Bishop scattered 25 with 12 boards while Standhardinger banged in 19, including two pivotal buckets in the last 28.4 that extinguished the Elasto Painters' late uprising.
Rain or Shine fell to its fourth loss in as many games but not before giving the Gin Kings a major headache over 48 minutes.
"Yeng Guiao's teams are always tough. They move the ball and they're not afraid to shoot the ball. And when they get hot, they're a tough team to play. They're focused tonight, they're a desperate team with 0-3, they needed to win," said Cone.
"I just have to give our guys credit for battling. Even though they're not playing well, they battled all the way through and found a way to win. These are the kind of games that you build character with," he added.
Sponsored content: Andrei Caracut, whose four-of-six three-point sniping fuelled ROS' fightback, fired a new career high of 32. A 23rd selection in Season 46, Caracut became the lowest pick to score that much since Roi Sumang, No. 26 overall in 2015, had the same output for Blackwater in the 2017 Governors' Cup. (OL)
The scores:
Ginebra 107 -Bishop 25, Ahanmisi 21, Standhardinger 19, J.Aguilar 13, Thompson 12, Malonzo 11, Pringle 6, Pinto 0, Cu 0, Pessumal 0.
Rain or Shine 102 - Caracut 32, Summer 25, Santillan 17, Mamuyac 8, Asistio 6, Clarito 6, Norwood 6, Belga 2, Demusis 0, Belo 0, Nambatac 0.
Quarters: 24-26, 49-44, 75-69, 107-102
